Modi government changed the names of how many schemes of UPA government? MNREGA will make India developed – Ji Ram Ji

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Modi government has brought VB-G RAM G Bill, 2025 in Lok Sabha, which will replace MNREGA.

In 2005, the UPA government launched the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, which was later named Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), to guarantee employment in rural India. This scheme remained a lifeline for the rural poor for two decades. Now Narendra Modi government has decided to replace this MNREGA with a new law named Bharat-Guarantee for Employment and Livelihood Mission i.e. VBG RAM G. With the passing of the law, MNREGA will be implemented in a new form.

For the first time, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government that came to power in 2014 has not changed the name of any scheme. Even before this, many schemes have been introduced in new forms. Come, let us know in detail.

New name of MNREGA: VBG RAM G

The government has brought VBG RAM G Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha, which will replace MNREGA. Under this new law, there is a provision to provide guaranteed labor work to rural families for 125 days instead of 100 days. The focus is not limited to just wages but has been placed on rural infrastructure, water security, livelihoods and climate-friendly development with the vision of Developed India 2047. It now appears to be moving away from a purely rights-based model towards a budget-limited, supply-driven model, where the central government will decide how much resources each state will receive and in which areas the scheme will be implemented.

According to media reports, this will also increase the financial burden on the states because the fund sharing pattern will change to 90:10 or 60:40 model. Congress and other opposition parties allege that this is not just a policy change, but a re-branding of a popular scheme of the UPA era and an attempt to weaken rights.

Mgnrega Will Know As Vbg Ram G (2)

Mgnrega Will Know As Vbg Ram G (2)

Names of which schemes of UPA were changed?

Amidst the ongoing debate on the new name of MNREGA, it is important to see which major schemes of the UPA and earlier Congress governments were changed by the Modi government from 2014 till now.

  1. Indira Awas Yojana now Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Rural and Urban)

Indira Awas Yojana was started by Rajiv Gandhi in 1985. Later it expanded during the UPA era. In the year 2016, it was restructured and launched as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY-G) for rural and PMAY-Urban for the urban part. The argument given was that now the target is much bigger. There has also been major expansion in Housing for All and financial and technical infrastructure.

  1. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) now AMRUT

Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), started in 2005 during UPA-I, was aimed at improving infrastructure and services in cities. In the year 2015, Modi government started Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), which was called the successor of JNNURM. The new name is a reference to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the focus was packaged as Atal Mission.
How Many Upa Schemes Name Changed By Modi Government

  1. Rajiv Gandhi Rural Electrification Scheme now Deendayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Scheme

Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY), started in 2005, was aimed at providing electricity to villages. By incorporating this, Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana was started in the year 2015. Here, along with the name change, the ideological inclination is also clearly visible. Leaving aside the names of Nehru-Gandhi family, Jan Sangh and BJP ideologues like Deendayal Upadhyay come to the fore.

  1. Nirmal Bharat/Nirmal Gram Yojana now Swachh Bharat Mission

Nirmal Gram Puraskar / Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, started around 2005, was aimed at promoting toilets and cleanliness in villages. In the year 2014, Modi government started Swachh Bharat Mission, in which both cities and villages were included. The Congress alleges that Swachh Bharat is actually a largely re-branded and expanded version of the same old framework.

  1. National Rural Livelihood Mission now Deendayal Antyodaya Scheme NRLM

National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), a scheme launched by the UPA in 2011 to improve the livelihoods of poor rural women through self-help groups. In the year 2016, it was reorganized and named Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Rural Livelihood Mission. By adding Deendayal to the name, the government linked it to its ideology of Antyodaya to the poor.

  1. National Food Security Scheme now Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana

National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 (UPA government), under which about 81 crore people were guaranteed food grains at cheap prices. During Covid-19, Modi government started the free food grain scheme and branded it Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY). The financial burden and coverage is based on almost the same law, but the branding is completely new.

  1. Other variations and broader patterns

Congress claims that in total, the names of more than 30 schemes and projects launched by its governments were changed or absorbed into new names. Congress has put a list of many such schemes on its website, in which the names of the Nehru-Gandhi family have been removed. Parallel to this, the Modi government changed the names of projects like Indira Awas, Rajiv Gandhi, changed the name of Rajpath to Dutva Path, Race Course Road to Lok Kalyan Marg and redefined the names of many ministries and laws in Hindi and Indian words, such as Indian Justice Code instead of IPC/CrPC, Indian Civil Protection Code, etc.

BJP presents it as a process of decolonization and Indianization, while critics say it is a political ideological rewriting, in which memories of the old regime are being removed and new symbols are being installed.

Politics of name change just branding or policy change?

Supporters argue that the parameters of funding, target and implementation have changed in most of the schemes, hence the new name is natural. Programs like Swachh Bharat or Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana have been run on a much larger scale than the earlier versions, so it would be unfair to call them mere name changes. The opposition’s response is that the basic outline of the schemes (like housing, urban renewal, rural electrification, food security, livelihood missions etc.) were prepared by the Congress governments. Political credit is being transferred by adding new names and names of Prime Minister or other BJP affiliated leaders.

Under the pretext of MNREGA, it is clearly visible that the names, symbols and branding of the schemes will remain a major weapon in the battle of Indian politics in the coming years. And the real question for the public will be that how strong is the guarantee of employment, housing, food and basic facilities on the ground?

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