Uttam Kumar Reddy brands MGNREGA overhaul a ‘death sentence’ for rural workers

Hyderabad: Minister for Irrigation and Civil Supplies N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Thursday called the Centre’s overhaul of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) a “death sentence” for rural workers. He said the Modi government was tearing down the scheme’s core guarantee through sweeping legal changes.

While addressing the TPCC working committee at Gandhi Bhavan, Reddy warned that replacing the Act would weaken its purpose. He promised a nationwide protest campaign to protect what he called one of Sonia Gandhi’s defining achievements.

Centre targeting Congress legacy and job rights, says Reddy

Reddy said the Act changed the face of rural India by offering work and dignity to low-income households. “This law brought real change to villages,” he said. He credited Sonia Gandhi for ensuring the legislation was passed.

He accused the Modi government of attacking MGNREGA because of its Congress roots. “Wherever there’s Mahatma Gandhi’s name or a Congress law, Modi ji wants to erase it,” he said. He added that the Centre had removed key protections, including the 100-day work guarantee and minimum wage rights.

He also criticised the shift of control away from village bodies. “Modi has taken NREGA out of the hands of Gram Panchayats,” Reddy said. He argued that this undermines the program’s local roots.

Budget cuts, local burden spark state-wide concern

Reddy highlighted that the Centre had cut the scheme’s budget by 40% and shifted costs to the states. “This is an unfair burden on state governments and a direct blow to rural families,” he said.

To resist the changes, he urged Congress workers to act across Telangana. He proposed that all 12,000 Gram Panchayats in the state pass resolutions rejecting the amendments. These resolutions, he said, should go to the President of India with a demand to restore MGNREGA.

Telangana Congress prepares protest drive

Reddy called on party members to step up village-level action. “We must oppose the removal of Gandhi’s name, the funding cuts, and the loss of job rights,” he said. He stressed that local mobilisation was the key to defending rural workers.

He closed with a clear appeal: “We must keep fighting until NREGA returns to what it was—a real guarantee of jobs and wages for the people.”

Senior Telangana Congress leaders backed Reddy’s statements, signalling an expanded campaign against the Centre’s changes.