Punjab’s Rural Development and Panchayat Minister, Tarunpreet Singh Sond, has written to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan requesting the regularisation of MGNREGA employees under the new VB‑G RAM G scheme. He emphasized the need for a national policy ensuring job security for these workers and criticized the burden placed on states by the new scheme. Sond highlighted the importance of releasing pending salaries and expressed concern over the uncertain future of employees who have dedicated nearly two decades to rural development.
The minister pointed out that MGNREGA, initiated in 2005, has been a vital source of employment in Punjab for 18 years, benefitting thousands of households. He underscored the significant contributions of around 2,000 to 2,100 employees, including Technical Assistants and Computer Operators, who have diligently served under this Central Government scheme. Sond criticized the discontinuation of the existing MGNREGA scheme by the BJP-led Central Government, raising doubts about the sudden transition to a new scheme effective from July 1.
Sond expressed dismay over the potential erasure of 18 years of hard work by these employees under the Central Government’s scheme. He emphasized that the Punjab government had no involvement in the management of the MGNREGA program, highlighting the responsibility of the Central Government in safeguarding the interests of long-serving employees.
