Govt notifies new VB-G RAM-G rules, excess spending to be monitored to prevent misuse

The rural development ministry on Thursday notified rules, mandating strict monitoring of any excess funds being spent by states or Union territories on the new rural employment guarantee scheme over and above the “normative” central allocation for each of them in a fiscal year.

A day after the formal July 1 rollout of the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission-Gramin (VB-G RAM-G), the ministry notified three sets of rules.

These pertain to the procedure of expenditure incurred by the states above the outlay; the manner of payment of wages and unemployment allowances; and transitional provisions for settling of liabilities under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) that the VB-G RAM-G replaces.


The state-wise “normative” allocations of funds by the Centre for the VB-G RAM-G scheme are based on certain objective criteria approved by the rural development ministry.

For the current fiscal, the state-wise “normative” allocations made by the Centre stand at Rs 95,692 crore. Including the states' share, the total allocation for VB-G RAM-G will exceed Rs 1.5 lakh crore in FY27.

The latest notification says all expenditures under the new scheme will have to be captured through the official Management Information System. This will enable component-wise and source-wise reporting of expenditure so as to distinctly identify the portion financed from Central assistance and that funded by the state government.

The rules require state governments to ensure that all admissible liabilities under the MGNREGA are settled after due verification. They have to submit audited utilisation certificates as mandated under the MGNREGA, by completing all due processes and procedures relating to verification, reconciliation, audit, and reporting of expenditure and liabilities within 180 days. An extension of 90 days can be granted by the Centre in such cases, if required.

The payment of wages and unemployment allowances under the VB-G RAM-G will have to be made directly into the bank or post office account of the beneficiary. No cash payment is allowed, unless under exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the central government.

The new law guarantees 125 days of employment in a fiscal year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work, up from 100 days under the MGNREGA.

States, except hilly and north-eastern ones, have to bear 40% of the wage costs under the new scheme. Under MGNREGS, the Centre used to bear the entire wage bill.