KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that her government would rename a state-funded job guarantee scheme after Mahatma Gandhi, amidst the ongoing row over the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill (G RAM G Bill 2025).

The chief minister was addressing in a business and industry conclave in Kolkata today. “Now, Gandhiji’s name is not there in the Bill. I am really sorry and feel ashamed of the move. A Bill has been introduced in the parliament. Gandhiji’s name will not be there in the NREGA scheme, which was named after him. We are forgetting the name of the Father of the Nation. I cannot blame anybody except me because I belong to this country,” Mamata said.

The Lok Sabha, during the ongoing winter session of the parliament, today passed the VB-G RAM G Bill, which seeks to replace the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance–era (UPA) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) that guarantees employment in rural areas.

“We launched a scheme called ‘Karmashree’ in our state. This scheme will be renamed after Gandhiji. We are providing more than 75 days of job under this scheme. We are not beggars. We only want respect and nothing else. If you don’t give respect to Gandhiji, we will give him the due respect,” she added.