The nationwide launch of ‘Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Yojana’ took place today from Mukkavaripalli village in Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh. Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Shri Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Shri Pawan Kalyan, Union Ministers of State Dr. Chandrashekhar Pemmnasani and Shri Kamlesh Paswan, along with MPs, MLAs and thousands of people from the public were present. During this programme, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, a new model was presented for employment guarantee for poor labourers, farmers and villages across the country, along with large financial allocations for village development and a transparent system.

Starting with salutations at the feet of Lord Venkateswara – VB - G Ram G

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan began his address with ‘Namah Venkateswaraya’ and chants of ‘Govinda, Govinda’, stating that launching the ‘Viksit Bharat G - Ram G Yojana’ from this sacred land is like a shower of divine blessings for the poor and labourers. He prayed that no poor labourer in the country should remain without work, and that every hand should get work and every stomach should get food. He thanked Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi from the heart for implementing this resolve on the ground.

From MGNREGA to VB - G Ram G – A leap to guaranteed employment for 125 days

Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan reminded that the MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) started during the former UPA government provided a guarantee of only 100 days of employment. He said that under Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s new strategy, the ‘Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana’ provides a firm guarantee of a full 125 days of work for labourers. He said that this is not just an increase in the number of days but a change in thinking, with the goal now that no hand should remain empty. He proudly stated that on the very first day of the new scheme’s implementation, lakhs of labourers across the country have received work, and MGNREGA has been transformed into the improved form of VB - G Ram G Yojana.

Provision of Rs. 1.51 lakh crore in the first year, target of Rs. 7.5 lakh crore in five years

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan spoke in detail about the financial aspects of the scheme and said that in the very first year of the ‘Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana’, the Centre’s share will be more than Rs. 95,000 crore and adding the states’ 40 per cent share, the annual expenditure will reach around Rs. 1.51 lakh crore. Shri Shivraj Singh informed that the target is to spend a total of Rs. 7.5 lakh crore under this scheme over the next five years. This money will reach the country’s 2.86 lakh panchayats, giving each panchayat an average of more than Rs. 2 crore per year, which will increase employment in villages and also create permanent assets.

Legal guarantee of employment – Work within 15 days, otherwise unemployment allowance

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that under the ‘Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana’, labourers’ rights have been given legal strength. Upon any labourer demanding work, it will be mandatory to provide employment within 15 days, and if work is not provided within the stipulated time, the concerned labourer will have to be given unemployment allowance. He emphasised that now no one can play with the labourer’s sweat. To end the old problem of delay in wage payment, the scheme includes a provision that if wages are delayed, the labourer will be paid the delayed wages along with interest. This is so that the labourer gets the full value of his sweat and the ‘Modi Mantra’ of considering service to the poor as worship of God is visible on the ground.

Strengthening the system with 9 per cent administrative expenditure, full salary for field staff

Union Minister of Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh informed that administrative expenditure has been increased from 6 per cent to 9 per cent for effective implementation of the scheme. Under this, more than Rs. 13,000 crore have been kept for the salaries and facilities of Gram Rozgar Sahayaks (contractual workers at Gram Panchayats), mates and other field-level employees. He said that it is necessary for the employees who handle the work of labourers and development in villages to get their full salary on time so that they do not get distracted and the system remains strong. In this way, this scheme will work to strengthen the administrative structure along with the labourers.

Village’s decision in the village – Gram Sabha will decide the works

Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan said in clear words that which work will be done in which village will not be decided from Delhi or Amaravati (in Andhra Pradesh). The right to decide works will remain with the gram panchayat and gram sabha. Giving an example, he said that the people of the village themselves will decide whether they want an Anganwadi, school, hospital or road, whether they want to build farm roads, structures for FPOs (Farmer Producer Organisations), ponds, check dams, dams or safety walls for protection from natural disasters – all these decisions will be taken by the gram sabha sitting in the village. The village’s decision will be in the village; this is the soul of the G-Ram-G Yojana.

Additional help for backward panchayats, special amount of Rs. 7,707 crore for Andhra Pradesh

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan told the states that they can grade their panchayats into A, B, C categories and give more funds to those panchayats that are lagging in development so that the pace of development in interior and backward areas increases. In the context of Andhra Pradesh, he informed that a special amount of Rs. 7,707 crore from the Centre is being given under the ‘Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana’ for a period of only nine months. Along with the state government’s share, this package will bring Andhra Pradesh among the top states in the country and give great strength for employment and development in villages. He expressed confidence that under the leadership of Chief Minister Shri Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Shri Pawan Kalyan, Andhra Pradesh will emerge as a model of village development.

New wage rates

Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that now the wage in any state will not be less than Rs. 300. In Andhra Pradesh, this rate has been kept between Rs. 312-315 so that labourers get the full value of their sweat.

Big gifts for Prime Minister’s housing and rural roads – Approval letters handed over from the stage

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced big gifts for poor families and villages of Andhra Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Gramin (PMAY-G) and Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana – IV (PMGSY). He informed that 74,212 new pucca houses have been sanctioned for Andhra Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) so that no eligible poor family remains in a kachcha house and everyone gets honourable housing. Along with this, he also addressed the concern of those villages that are not yet connected by pucca roads. Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh said that for such areas, 146 new roads and 19 bridges have been sanctioned with a total amount of more than Rs. 422 crore. Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan handed over the approval letters for these sanctions from the stage to the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister and assured that if villages progress, India will change and the Central Government will leave no stone unturned in the complete rural development of Andhra Pradesh.

Relief for Totapuri mango farmers – Market intervention to guarantee fair prices

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan referred to the problems of Totapuri mango producing farmers of Andhra Pradesh and said that due to falling prices of Totapuri mango, farmers are suffering heavy losses, therefore the Central Government has decided to purchase large quantities of Totapuri mango under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) so that farmers get fair prices and their hard work is protected. Along with this, he informed that the ICR scientific team will work with the state government team on drafting and variety change techniques so that the productivity of mango orchards increases and better varieties are available in the market.

Resolve for environmental protection

Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed to the people to take a pledge for environmental protection and said that he himself plants trees every day and urged the public to plant at least one tree on their birthday. From this stage, he made the people take a collective pledge for developed villages, developed Andhra Pradesh and developed India (Viksit Bharat).

Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana is transformative for villages and rural life standards

Chief Minister Shri Chandrababu Naidu, in his address, described the ‘Viksit Bharat – G Ram G Yojana’ as a programme that will bring change in villages and rural life standards. He said that earlier MGNREGA had started from Rayalaseema and given a model to the country, now on the same base but in a more empowered form, the ‘VB - G RAM G Yojana’ is starting and is a big step towards Swarna (golden) Andhra Pradesh and Viksit Bharat. He said that with the guarantee of 125 days of employment along with works like farm roads, ponds, drainage and other facilities and social security for landless labourers, there will be direct improvement in rural life standards.

Digital monitoring to curb corruption, planning of development from Gram Sabhas

Shri Chandrababu Naidu informed that in this new scheme, digital master roll, payments based on Aadhaar, real-time monitoring and geo-tagging technologies will be used for monitoring of works. This will stop the old practice of accounting on paper without doing the work and money will be spent at the right place. Referring to the Gram Sabhas held in the state in recent years under the leadership of Shri Pawan Kalyan, CC (cement concrete) roads, goshalas, water tanks, pump-ponds and roads built in tribal areas, he said that on the basis of these experiences, the ‘VB - G Ram G Yojana’ will now be implemented in the best way and Andhra Pradesh will be made a model state of the country.

Big investment for horticulture hub

The Chief Minister also shared his vision to make the Rayalaseema region a horticulture hub. He said that under the Purvodaya programme, a target of about Rs. 40,000 crore of public or government investment and about Rs. 60,000 crore of private investment has been set so that through irrigation projects, road connectivity, warehouses and infrastructure, Rayalaseema can be made a major centre of fruits and horticulture in the country. He described this vision as a decisive step towards Swarna Andhra Pradesh and said that rural employment, horticulture, industry investment and infrastructure – all together will contribute to making Andhra Pradesh a leading state.

Amaravati, Polavaram and industry investment for Swarna Andhra Pradesh

Shri Chandrababu Naidu described Amaravati as the ‘Capital of the Gods’ and said that with the help of the Central Government, through projects like the capital project, Polavaram, Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, data centres and fighter jet project, the brand image of Andhra Pradesh has been raised again. He said that right leader, right place, right time – that is Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and along with the vision of making India the number one country by 2047, work is progressing rapidly towards Swarna Andhra Pradesh.

In the programme, Union Minister of State for Rural Development Dr. Chandrashekhar Pemmnasani said that in ‘VB - G Ram G’, not only have the days of work been increased from Rs. 100 to 125, but there is also a provision for unemployment allowance in case of non-availability of work. This will ensure that every worker gets work. On the other hand, Union Minister of State for Rural Development Shri Kamlesh Paswan said that the ‘VB - G Ram G Yojana’ will become the foundation of Viksit Bharat. Under this scheme, more than 300 types of works will be done which will play a very important role in making rural India empowered and prosperous. Rural Development Department Secretary Shri Rohit Kansal and Joint Secretary Smt. Rohini R. Bhajibhakare were also present in the programme.

Andhra Pradesh gets strength from Centre’s cooperation

Deputy Chief Minister Shri Pawan Kalyan said that Shivraj Ji, your 49 years of public life is a symbol of public service and dedication towards farmers and rural India. As a six-time MP and four-time Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, you have served the country and set an inspiring example. Your struggle and jail journey during the Emergency to protect democracy is a source of inspiration for all of us. Under your guidance and the leadership of Prime Minister Ji, Andhra Pradesh has received approval of Rs. 12,845 crore for rural development. With your cooperation, the panchayati raj system in the state has been strengthened and many important development works including plantation in tribal areas have progressed and Andhra Pradesh has reached the first position in the national ranking of RGSA (Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan) from the 24th position. He said that by choosing Andhra Pradesh for the national launch of VB - G RAM G, you have increased the honour of every citizen of our state.

At the beginning of the programme, Chief Minister Shri Naidu and Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan reached the farm pond activity site, performed puja and ground breaking, planted saplings, saw the ‘Magic Drain’ demonstration and observed the exhibition of Andhra Pradesh’s achievements and initiatives.

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