“Right to Work Snatched”: Mass Protest in Bengaluru Against VB-Gram G Act

Coalition Demands State Reject Central Law, Reinstate NREGA

Bengaluru, Feb 2: A broad coalition of workers’ unions, farmers’ groups, and civil society organizations has passed a resolution demanding the Karnataka state government formally reject the central government’s ‘VB-Gram G’ Act and urge the President to issue an order to continue the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA).

The demands were ratified during a ‘Maha Panchayat’ held at Freedom Park as part of the ‘Save NREGA’ campaign. The coalition has urged the state government to forward the resolutions to the President through the Governor and take immediate steps to strengthen the rural job scheme.

Decentralization vs. Centralization: The Core Conflict

At the heart of the protest is the accusation that the central government has replaced a constitutional right with a discretionary scheme. Activist Noor Sridhar, addressing the gathering, stated, “NREGA, which was the backbone of the rural poor and a constitutional right, has been repealed by the central government. It has been replaced by the VB-Gram G Act, which centralizes all decision-making power, disempowers people, and shifts the accountability onto state governments.”

Sridhar elaborated that NREGA, a symbol of decentralization, has been replaced by a centralized plan. “The assurance of ‘work for as many days as demanded’ under NREGA has been changed to ‘work as per requirement’ under VB-Gram G. The right to work has been snatched away, and there is no guarantee of employment,” he said.

Key Demands and Allegations of Dilution

The Maha Panchayat outlined specific concerns and demands:

• Job Days & Wages: The coalition demanded that NREGA be not only continued but expanded. The guarantee of “100 days of work per family” should be converted to “100 days per individual,” ensuring an average of 300 days of work per household. The minimum wage under the scheme must be raised to ₹600.

• Loss of Local Autonomy: Protesters highlighted that while Gram Panchayats decided the nature of work under NREGA, this power will now rest with the central government.

• Funding & Implementation Flaws: Sridhar criticized the funding structure, noting, “The central government should have allocated ₹2.3 lakh crore for this scheme, excluding the state share, but only ₹95,000 crore has been earmarked in the budget. This is a strategy to reduce work.” He also demanded the removal of the clause requiring states to fund 40% of the scheme.

• Risk of Corruption: A significant concern raised was the creation of avenues for middlemen. “NREGA had no space for intermediaries. VB-Gram G opens the door for them. Therefore, NREGA must be reinstated,” Sridhar asserted.

  

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Broad-Based Support for the Movement

The Maha Panchayat saw participation from a wide array of organizations, including the NREGA Protection Coalition, Rural Wage Labourers’ Associations, the Anti-Land Acquisition Struggle Committee, the Land and Housing Rights Deprived Struggle Committee, Karnataka Janashakti, CPI(ML), and various farmers’, dalit, women’s, and writers’ forums.

The resolution places the onus on the state government to act as a conduit for their grievances to the highest office and to take a definitive stand against the central legislation, framing the issue as a fight to preserve a fundamental right to livelihood and local governance.