West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
NEW DELHI: The West Bengal government on Saturday officially renamed its flagship 100-day employment scheme, ‘Karmashree’, to ‘Mahatmashree’ in honour of Mahatma Gandhi.The notification follows West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s announcement two days earlier, amid the row over the central government renaming the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission–Gramin (VB-G RAM G) Bill.Also Read | ‘We’ll give respect to Mahatma Gandhi’: Mamata to rename Bengal job scheme; slams Centre”The renaming not only preserves the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi but also aligns our state programme with the spirit of public welfare,” news agency PTI quoted a senior state official as saying.On Thursday, Banerjee, who also leads the state’s ruling TMC, announced at a business event in Kolkata that Karmashree would be given a new name. “We started the Karmashree scheme, but Gandhi ji’s name was not included. I’m really sorry, I’m ashamed. The father of the nation’s name should have been there, just like in the MGNREGA program. In the new bill, Gandhi ji’s name won’t be there,” Banerjee said.“So, Karmashree’s name will be changed to Mahatma ji’s scheme. If the Centre does not give respect to Mahatma ji, we will,” she added.Govt vs opposition on VB-G RAM GBoth Houses of Parliament passed the VB-G RAM G Bill on Thursday, the penultimate day of Parliament’s winter session, which began on December 1. VB-G RAM G to replace MGNREGA and guarantees 125 days of rural wage employment every year. MGNREGA was introduced by the erstwhile Congress-led UPA government at the Centre in 2005.Also Read | ‘Attack on poor’: Sonia Gandhi slams PM Modi over VB-G RAM G Bill; criticises repealing of MGNREGAThe national opposition, including the TMC, had demanded that the VB-G RAM G Bill be sent to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny, citing the “financial burden” it would place on states, and criticised the BJP-led Centre for removing Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the rural employment guarantee scheme.The Union government, however, maintains that the new legislation is a “substantial improvement” over MGNREGA, which it described as “riddled with corruption and inefficiency.”
