Mangaluru/ Bidar, 10 Jan

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that the State government would hold a padayatra in every Assembly constituency in Karnataka to save MGNREGA from 26 January to 2 February.

“To save MGNREGA, AICC has planned one programme. However, as far as Karnataka is concerned, we have planned a different program.

We are calling a special session of the Assembly on MGNREGA. We will see that in every Assembly constituency a padyatara is organised to save MGNREGA,” the Deputy CM said in Mangaluru.

Each padayatra will cover a distance of five to 10km and will involve panchayat members and labourers to inform people how the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G Ram G) “kills” the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). He also noted that the State government was holding a two-day special session on MGNREGA.

Earlier, the Cabinet passed a resolution rejecting the VB-G Ram G and vowing to move to the courts.

Meanwhile, Minister Priyank Kharge said that the VB-G-RAM-G Bill violates Article 21 of the Constitution and infringes upon the fundamental right to livelihood. He said it weakened the country’s federal structure.