Chennai, July 2:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay on Wednesday worte to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the need for some critical modificagion and relaxations for seamless implementation of the VBGRAMBG scheme at the ground level, besides continuing the scheme in the name of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi to honour his legacy and to foster public goodwill aligned with the core ethos of the scheme.
In a Demi-Official letter to Mr Modi, he said the Viksit Bharat—Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-GRAMG) scheme, which commenced today imposes an additional financial burden of over Rs. 5000 crore under the new sharing pattern and restrictive operational implications on the State Government.
However, certain provisions of the VBGRAMG Act, 2025 require critical modifications and relaxations, without which the seamless and effective execution of this scheme on the ground would suffer
significantly and will affect the rural population which is dependent on the rural employment programme.
He said on the fund-sharing pattern, the current guidelines mandate 60:40 ratio between the Union and State across the Wage, Material, and Administrative components. As MGNREGS operated under a different structure for two decades, this abrupt shift places an unsustainable strain on the State exchequer, which may reduce available wage employment days or crowd out other essential welfare schemes,
while requesting that 100% funding be maintained for the Wage and Administrative components, with the Material component shared on a 75:25 basis between the Central and TN Governments.
The proposed centralized methodology for classifying Village Panchayats and distribution within the State normative allocations introduces micromanagement. A uniform, formulaic national approach
fails to account for regional socio-economic diversity and risks lopsided grassroot allocations, Vijay said, adding, the State Government should therefore be permitted to formulate its own customized methodology for intra-state distribution based on localized, ground-level needs.
On the notification of peak agricultural seasons which also requires greater field-level flexibility, the Chief Minister said the Act mandates that the State notify a fixed 60-day period per financial year covering peak sowing and harvesting, during which works are suspended. However, unpredictable climate fluctuations such as El Niño frequently alter agricultural timelines, creating sudden unseasonal labour demand or a sharp need for safety-net employment during pre-notified peak periods.
Instead of advance notification, authority should be decentralized to District Collectors to notify the 60-day peak period dynamically as per local conditions.
Noting that the extension of wage employment support to State housing schemes is a vital priority, he said while the Act permits convergence with Union rural housing schemes, it excludes State-funded housing initiatives. “Housing for All” is a primary objective of the TN Government aimed at empowering underprivileged rural and tribal communities to live
with dignity. Including State Housing Schemes under the VB-GRAMG framework would significantly accelerate these welfare targets, and help in ensuring housing for all.
Observing that decentralization of convergence approvals is essential for timely execution, Vijay opined that the Act requires that every Central, State, or local scheme intended for convergence be individually notified by the Union Government. As convergence opportunities depend on evolving budgetary positions of local bodies and new State initiatives, such individual notification will create administrative bottlenecks. Delegating authority to the State to notify and approve schemes for convergence, under intimation to the Union Government, would ensure far more effective and
timely execution.
Urging Modi to continue the scheme in the name of Mahatma Gandhi in order to honour his legacy and to foster public goodwill aligned with the core ethos of the scheme, Vijay said Tamil Nadu has consistently been a national forerunner in implementing rural employment guarantees. With these vital adjustments, the scheme can be executed with greater strategic vision, maximum local impact, and a sharper focus on rural empowerment.