Rajasthan Assembly passes Minimum Guaranteed Income Bill

As per the Bill, all families of the state, whether urban or rural, will be able to get employment guarantee of 125 days every year, and a minimum pension of Rs 1,000 per month in case of aged/disabled/single women, etc. Importantly, the pension will also be automatically increased at the rate of 15 per cent each year.

Responding to the debate on the Bill, Dhariwal said, “You (the Opposition) are asking how will peoples’ income increase by giving them Rs 1,000 pension, how will they survive. I want to tell you that beyond this Rs 1,000 they are also getting free treatment up to Rs 25 lakh under Chiranjeevi Yojana, accident insurance up to Rs 10 lakh, free electricity up to 100 units – and up to 200 units for farmers, gas cylinder at Rs 500 and Annapurna Ration Kits; if we consider all these things, then their income will certainly increase.”

With some MLAs questioning the implementation of the government’s announcements, Dhariwal said that since its first budget in 2019, the Ashok Gehlot government has fulfilled 80 per cent of its announcements. He said that what sets the law apart is that now anyone (eligible for employment or pension under the scheme) can approach the courts if her right is denied to her.

Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore termed the Bill as eyewash while saying that Rajasthan’s population is projected to be over 8 crore of which well over a crore are Below Poverty Line (BPL). “Now you are guaranteeing a minimum income for such a huge population – with a provision of just Rs 2,500 crore under the Bill,” Rathore said.

Implying that the government’s announcements have not been financially sound, he said that about Rs 45,000 crores are required to implement the government’s flagship schemes while per person debt in Rajasthan was Rs 38,782 in 2019, which has now increased to Rs 70,848 in 2022-23.

He also attacked the government for publicising the ‘CM employment guarantee scheme’ under the Bill. The scheme provides an additional 25 days’ work to rural families which have completed 100 days under MGNREGA. He said that as of July 20, there were 137 lakh active workers under MGNREGA, while active job cards were over 88 lakh. He claimed that in 2022-23, there were 1.42 lakh families which completed 100 days under MGNREGA. “So, only 1.42 lakh, or just about 1 per cent families are eligible for the CM employment scheme” he said.

Rathore also claimed that there are 93.40 lakh pensioners of which 42 lakh pensioners got registered at Mehengai Rahat Camps while “51 lakh maintained their distance from these camps. Rajasthanis have a history, they don’t want charity. It is the public’s money. Isn’t it inequality that if I don’t go to a Mehengai Rahat Camp and don’t get clicked with the CM’s photo, I won’t get the increased pension? What is this game?” Immediately, Dhariwal countered that “whether a person goes to a camp or not, they will still be eligible for a minimum of Rs 1,000 in pension.”

Biharilal, BJP MLA from Nokha in Bikaner, said that the government had also said it will bring Accountability Law. “You are extending all these rights and guarantees for employment and pension, but what will eventually happen to these rights without accountability, without fixing anyone’s accountability?”

Terming the Bill “revolutionary”, independent MLA Sanyam Lodha said that “Ashok Gehlot is a messiah of social justice.” Lodha, also an advisor to Gehlot, said that “these are not ‘revdis’, we are giving people’s money back to the people. It depends on how we spend it. Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi can escape with money, or we can waive off loans worth hundreds of crores of industrialists as NPA,” he said. He, however, urged the government to change the employment from “task based to time based.”

BJP MLA from Sanganer in Jaipur, Ashok Lahoty, said that “You have written four lines and are giving a guarantee – which has no head or limbs – to the 8 crore population of the state.” BJP MLA from Bhilwara, Vitthal Shankar Awasthi too accused the government of “trying to fool people. July is on and only three months are left in this government. They should have brought this Bill at the beginning of their government.”

BJP MLA Abhinesh Maharshi from Ratangarh in Churu said that “when it is on its way out, the Rajasthan government is making new announcements every-day and wants to create a record so that its image, which had been tarnished, can be improved. But they are trying to improve their image by misleading people and they have not fulfilled even 40 per cent of the promises made in their first budget.”