Mamata Banerjee To Rename Karmashree Scheme After Mahatma Gandhi Amid 'G Ram G' Row

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced on Thursday that the state’s Karmashree scheme will be renamed after Mahatma Gandhi, in response to the Centre’s VB-G RAM-G Bill, which replaces MGNREGA. Speaking at the Business and Industry Conclave at Dhono Dhanyo Auditorium, Banerjee expressed her dismay over the name change of India’s flagship rural employment programme, calling it a matter of “deep shame.”

“We have also started the Karmashree project, as MNREGA funds have been stopped. Removal of Gandhiji’s name fills me with deep shame. They are forgetting the father of the nation. We have decided to rename our Karmashree scheme after Mahatma Gandhi,” she said.

“If you don’t know how to respect Mahatma Gandhi, then we certainly know how to honour

him and others like Netaji, Rabindranath Tagore, and others.”

VIDEO | Kolkata: At Business Conclave, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) announces her government’s job guarantee scheme ‘Karmashree’ will be renamed after Mahatma Gandhi.

(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvrpG7) pic.twitter.com/en3CUvKOPg

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 18, 2025

The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, passed in the Lok Sabha today, has ignited a political controversy since its introduction in Parliament. The Bill ensures 125 days of wage employment per rural household annually to those whose adult members volunteer for unskilled manual work, enhancing income security beyond the previous 100-day entitlement. It also includes a 60-day no-work period to ensure agricultural labour availability during peak seasons. Furthermore, the Bill introduces a 60:40 fund-sharing ratio between the Centre and the states.

Meanwhile, the Karmashree scheme in West Bengal guarantees at least 50 days of wage employment per Job Card holder household per financial year through various state government departments.