Notification of 318 Permissible Works Under India’s New Rural Employment Framework

Key Facts

• The Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025, received presidential assent on 20 December 2025 and replaces MGNREGA.
• The Act commits to 125 days of wage employment per rural household annually, increasing from MGNREGA's 100 days.
• On 24 June 2026, the interim list of 318 permissible works was notified and grouped under four thematic areas: water security, core rural infrastructure, rural livelihoods, and special works addressing extreme weather.
• The scheme starts on 1 July 2026 and adopts a "single plan – multi funding" approach using Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans at the Gram Panchayat level.
• The funding pattern has changed: the Centre-State sharing ratio is 60:40 for most states and 90:10 for Northeastern and Himalayan states.
• The new framework includes digital monitoring using biometric authentication, geo-tagging, and mandates social audits and grievance redressal systems.
• States bear costs exceeding normative allocations, unemployment allowance, and compensation for wage payment delays.

Background & Context

MGNREGA, enacted in 2005, was a landmark rights-based demand-driven rural employment program guaranteeing 100 days of wage employment annually. However, evolving rural development needs and the pursuit of integrated infrastructure and livelihood development motivated the legislature to introduce the Viksit Bharat Act, 2025, which creates a more comprehensive and digitally monitored framework. It aims to link rural employment with sustainable infrastructure and climate resilience while enhancing fiscal predictability through normative allocations.

The Act mandates bottom-up planning through Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans, integrated at district and state levels into a national rural infrastructure stack focused on four thematic domains. The Act also formalizes a pause of up to 60 days annually during peak agricultural seasons to safeguard farm labour availability, a feature not present in MGNREGA.

Why This Matters for Exams / Exam Relevance

Understanding the transition from MGNREGA to the Viksit Bharat Act, including key changes in employment guarantee days, funding patterns, and planning mechanisms, is critical for competitive exams focused on Indian polity, rural development, and governance frameworks such as UPSC, SSC, State PSCs, and Bank exams. Questions may target the Act’s features, thematic focus areas, governance reforms, and differences from MGNREGA.

Stay familiar with the dates of enactment and implementation (20 Dec 2025 and 1 July 2026 respectively), provisions related to the funding pattern, digital monitoring tools, and the structure of permissible works to address various rural challenges.

Points to Remember

• Viksit Bharat Act received presidential assent on 20 December 2025 and supersedes MGNREGA.
• The Act guarantees 125 days of paid employment annually per rural household; MGNREGA guaranteed 100 days.
• Interim list of 318 permissible works categorized under water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihoods, and extreme weather mitigation.
• Centre-State cost-sharing revised to 60:40 for most states, 90:10 for Northeastern and Himalayan states.
• Introduction of Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans as primary planning units integrating with the Viksit Bharat National Rural Infrastructure Stack.
• Digital tools and mechanisms mandated: biometric verification, geospatial tracking, digital muster rolls, and social audits.
• The Act permits states up to 60 days annually to suspend works during peak agricultural seasons.
• Jammu and Kashmir has adopted a specific scheme consistent with the Act replacing MGNREGA from 1 July 2026.