Congress slams Centre's new rural job law, says it snatches rights

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury slammed the Centre's new rural job law, claiming it snatches away the poor's constitutional rights. P Chidambaram echoed this, calling the changes the 'second killing of Gandhi' and alleging serious flaws.

Congress Slams New Rural Employment Law

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Monday slammed the Centre for passing the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) law, saying that the constitutional rights of employment of poor people are being snatched away. On Sunday, President Droupadi Murmu granted assent to the bill, which guarantees 125 days of rural employment to people. "But the point is that with removing Mahatma Gandhi's name from this bill, the constitutional rights of employment of the poor people of our country are being snatched away," the Congress leader told ANI here.

While the Act guarantees 125 days of employment, the Opposition parties are saying that increasing the share of funds by states, the gap of 60 days, which pauses the scheme, is akin to "killing the scheme." The Congress has alleged that the central government will use the scheme to only benefit BJP-ruled states, and deny people employment in other states.

'Second Killing of Gandhi': Chidambaram

Congress MP and former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram claimed that along with the changes, including changing its name, is like the "second killing of Gandhi." Addressing a press conference at Chennai's Satyamurthy Bhavan, Chidambaram said, "Mahatma Gandhi has been killed a second time by altering the scheme. It is neither proper English nor Indian, but merely Hindi words written in English letters, which even ministers find difficult to understand. The new scheme will not be implemented nationwide. The Central Government will decide which districts and regions receive work. It states that the scheme cannot be implemented for 60 days a year, without specifying which 60 days. If a district is declared 'no work', people cannot even apply for employment. The new law contains several serious flaws."

Key Provisions of the New Act

The Act guarantees 125 days of wage employment per rural household, up from the existing 100 days, for adult members willing to undertake unskilled manual work.

As per Section 22, the fund-sharing pattern between the Centre and the states will be 60:40, while for the Northeastern states, the Himalayan states, and the Union Territories, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir, it will be 90:10.

Section 6 of the Act allows state governments to notify in advance a period aggregating up to 60 days in a financial year, covering peak agricultural seasons such as sowing and harvesting. (ANI)

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