Enhanced 125 day employment guarantee, agriculture-sensitive planning, technology-driven governance to strengthen rural livelihoods
SRINAGAR: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has notified the Jammu Kashmir Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) [VB-G RAM-G] Scheme, 2026, which will come into force across all notified rural areas of the Union Territory from July 1, 2026.
Issued under Section 3(1) read with Section 8 of the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025, the new scheme replaces MGNREGA and marks a major reform in rural employment and livelihood generation, aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.
The scheme guarantees 125 days of wage employment annually to every eligible rural household willing to undertake unskilled manual work, up from the earlier 100-day guarantee. Employment is to be provided within 15 days of demand, failing which applicants will be entitled to unemployment allowance. Wage payments will be made on a weekly basis or within a fortnight, with compensation for delays.
To protect agricultural productivity, the scheme introduces a mandatory 60-day pause in public works during peak sowing and harvesting seasons, ensuring adequate labour availability for farming activities. At the same time, it prioritises the creation of durable community assets and sustainable livelihood infrastructure.
VB-G RAM-G focuses on four priority sectors including Water Security, Core Rural Infrastructure, Livelihood Enhancement and Climate & Disaster Resilience. Planning will be undertaken through Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans (VGPPs) using GIS-based tools and PM Gati Shakti layers, ensuring convergence, saturation-based development and avoidance of duplication.
The scheme provides special support for the vulnerable groups, including single women, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, members of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), released bonded labourers and transgender persons through dedicated Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Cards. At least one-third of beneficiaries under the programme shall be women.
A key feature of the scheme is its robust digital governance architecture, incorporating biometric and face-authenticated attendance, geofencing, GPS-enabled project monitoring, AI-driven analytics, real-time dashboards, bilingual electronic muster rolls and mandatory public disclosures at worksites. The contractors and labour-displacing machinery are prohibited to preserve the employment-generation objective of the programme.
The implementation framework provides for strengthened institutional oversight at the UT, district, block and Gram Panchayat levels. The Gram Panchayats will continue to serve as the frontline implementing agencies responsible for registration of households, receiving work applications, issuance of guarantee cards and execution of approved works.
The scheme will operate as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with a 90:10 cost-sharing pattern between the Government of India and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir. Administrative expenditure has been enhanced to strengthen staffing, monitoring, grievance redressal and accountability systems, with substantial resources earmarked for Gram Panchayat-level functionaries.
A time-bound grievance redress mechanism, mandatory social audits, independent evaluations and multi-tier monitoring arrangements have been built into the framework to ensure transparency, efficiency, and citizen accountability.
With its enhanced employment guarantee, agriculture-sensitive design, technology-enabled governance and focus on resilient rural infrastructure, VB-G RAM-G is expected to usher in a new era of inclusive, sustainable and future-ready rural development in Jammu Kashmir.
