CPI flays Centre over weakening of rural job scheme, plans padayatra in Rayalaseema

The Communist Party of India (CPI) has alleged that the Centre is deliberately weakening the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), now known as the Viksit Bharat — Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025, causing serious injustice to agricultural labourers and the rural poor.

Addressing a press conference here on Monday, CPI national secretary K. Ramakrishna, along with A. P. State secretary G. Eswaraiah, criticised the policies of the Narendra Modi-led Union government, stating that they undermine the livelihood security of rural workers.

Mr. Ramakrishna announced that the CPI, in association with the Andhra Pradesh Agricultural Workers’ Union, will organise a three-day padayatra from Anantapur to Bandlapalli from April 10 to 12. He called upon thousands of workers and supporters to participate in the protest against what he termed anti-labour policies of the Centre.

He said that MGNREGA, earlier implemented as a legal right guaranteeing employment to rural households, is now being reduced to a mere scheme, weakening its effectiveness. “The Centre has shifted the burden onto States by reducing its funding share from 90% to 60%, forcing States to bear the remaining cost,” he said. This, he added, has led to financial strain and poor implementation across States, including Andhra Pradesh.

Mr. Eswaraiah criticised the State government for focusing development primarily on Amaravati and the Polavaram project, while neglecting long-pending irrigation projects in Rayalaseema.

He warned that continued neglect of backward regions could lead to growing dissatisfaction and future unrest. While acknowledging the need for Amaravati’s development, he said it should not come at the cost of other regions. He also demanded that the Polavaram project be completed without reducing its height and that the required ₹32,000 crore be secured from the Centre.

He questioned the lack of progress on projects such as the Veligonda project, stating that allocating only a few hundred crore instead of the required thousands would delay its completion. Once completed, the project could provide irrigation and drinking water to lakhs of people across three districts, he said.