Hyderabad: Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Minister Seethakka on Monday called for the passing of village-level resolutions to defend the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) from dilution or renaming by the Centre.
Addressing reporters at Gandhi Bhavan, Seethakka announced that the Telangana government would launch a state-wide campaign. It will encourage gram panchayats to formally oppose any change to the act’s name. Moreover, the government plans to send these resolutions to the Centre for further pressure.
She accused the BJP-led Central government of systematically undermining the rural employment scheme. According to her, MGNREGA was introduced by the Congress to curb rural migration and eradicate bonded labour.
However, Seethakka said the BJP has instead strangled the scheme. In addition, she said the move to remove Gandhi’s name from the act is deeply symbolic.
“By removing Gandhi’s name from the employment guarantee act, the BJP has once again assassinated Gandhi,” she said.
Furthermore, she announced that rallies would be held across Telangana on December 27 or 28 to intensify pressure on the Centre.
In her view, the name change signals an attempt to dismantle the act entirely and revive systems of exploitation. Therefore, she urged citizens and local bodies to resist these moves through democratic resolutions and public mobilisation.