Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, wrote a firm letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi raising serious concerns over the Centre's newly launched Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) — known as VB-GRAMG — which came into effect on the same day.
In an assertive defence of Tamil Nadu's interests and its rural workers, CM Vijay made clear that the new scheme's funding structure, operational restrictions and centralised approach could directly harm the lives of millions of workers who depend on rural employment programmes across the state.
"Tamil Nadu has consistently been a national leader in implementing rural employment guarantee programmes. The scheme could be executed more effectively with these changes, and I express hope that the Prime Minister would consider the state's proposals favourably."
— CM C. Joseph Vijay, letter to PM Narendra Modi, July 1, 2026The Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), introduced under the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025, replaces the long-standing Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) as the Centre's rural employment programme effective July 1, 2026. The Centre restructured the funding formula, operational rules and project approval process under the new Act.
The most critical concern raised by CM Vijay is the Centre's new 60:40 cost-sharing formula — under which Tamil Nadu must bear 40% of wage costs, material costs and administrative expenses. Under the long-standing MGNREGS structure, the Centre bore nearly the full burden of wages.
CM Vijay said this shift would impose an additional financial burden of more than ₹5,000 crore on the Tamil Nadu government — money that would otherwise fund the state's own welfare schemes for the poor, health, education and infrastructure.
CM Vijay also objected to the Centre's proposed centralised formula for village panchayat classification and fund allocation, arguing that a uniform national model ignores Tamil Nadu's distinct socio-economic profile. He said applying a one-size-fits-all formula across India's diverse regions would lead to uneven distribution of funds at the grassroots level, hitting Tamil Nadu's rural communities hardest.
CM Vijay underlined that Tamil Nadu has built an enviable record as one of India's highest-performing states in delivering rural employment guarantee schemes. The state's track record in MGNREGS implementation — covering crores of rural workdays annually — is precisely why the imposition of a restrictive new formula would cause disproportionate harm to Tamil Nadu compared to less active states.
This letter is a powerful statement of CM Vijay's people-first governance philosophy. Rather than quietly accepting a Centre-imposed formula that would have reduced employment days for Tamil Nadu's rural workers, CM Vijay chose to publicly and firmly push back — proposing concrete alternatives backed by data and fairness arguments.
It also signals the TVK government's intent to protect Tamil Nadu's fiscal autonomy and ensure that the state's strong track record in rural employment delivery is not undermined by a uniform national template that ignores regional differences.
CM Vijay PM Modi VB-GRAMG MGNREGS Rural Employment Centre–State Relations TVK Governance July 1 2026 Tamil Nadu Welfare