Bengal migrant workers: ₹34,500 a year promise, 7,190 posts approved

Representative image. Nayan j Nath, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Why it matters

Many workers from Bengal's villages earn their living in other states. The chief minister is asking them to weigh 125 days of guaranteed local work against wages away from home, and the figure he gave works out to about ₹2,875 a month. For job seekers, 7,190 government posts are on the way, though the rules must change before applications open.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, asked Bengal migrant workers in other states to come home and take up work under the 125-day rural jobs scheme, saying each job card holder is guaranteed ₹34,500 a year. At the same briefing in Kolkata he said the state Cabinet had approved 7,190 posts in the panchayat department, to be filled through the Public Service Commission by April 2027.

Suvendu Adhikari spoke to reporters after a review meeting with the Panchayat and Rural Development department, attended by Panchayat Minister Dilip Ghosh and senior officials, PTI reported. District magistrates and block development officers (BDOs) joined online, according to the Indian Express report.

What the chief minister told Bengal migrant workers

The appeal was tied to VB-G RAM G, short for Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), the rural employment scheme that promises 125 days of work a year and took over from MGNREGA (the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act scheme). Work under it began on 1 July, the Times of India reported in a preview of the meeting.

“I urge migrant labourers to come back and work in their own State. Come back and work with your family. ₹34,500 per annum is guaranteed for each job card holder,” Adhikari said, according to the report by the Press Trust of India (PTI) carried by The Hindu. Job cards are the cards issued to workers under the scheme.

The Week quoted Suvendu Adhikari saying that whole families could join the scheme and work together, and reported that the government would push for higher wages under the 125-day scheme. Its report gave the money figure differently, as ₹34,000 crore sanctioned for job card holders. PTI’s quotation of his words gives ₹34,500 a year for each card holder, and this article uses that version.

What ₹34,500 a year works out to

For Bengal migrant workers weighing a return, the yearly figure is easier to judge in smaller pieces. The reports read did not say how the ₹34,500 figure was calculated. Simple division shows what it means for one card holder. This is NewsPlainly’s calculation, using only the figure the chief minister gave and the 125 days the scheme promises.

Measure	Working	Amount
A year, as stated	Quoted by PTI	₹34,500
A month	₹34,500 ÷ 12	₹2,875
A day of work, if all 125 days are worked	₹34,500 ÷ 125	₹276

The figure assumes a card holder actually gets work on all 125 days. Whether a returning worker can find that much work in their own block depends on the work opened locally, which the reports did not cover.

Bengal panchayat recruitment: 7,190 posts by April 2027

The second announcement was about staff. On Bengal panchayat recruitment, Adhikari said the Cabinet had approved the recruitment of 7,190 people through the Public Service Commission (PSC) to strengthen panchayat administration, and that they should be in place by April 2027, PTI reported. The Indian Express and The Week reported the same number and deadline.

The reports describe the next step in slightly different words. The Indian Express said the posts would be created through legislation in a special Assembly session scheduled after Diwali, and quoted the chief minister saying new rules would make the process transparent. PTI and The Week said the recruitment rules would be amended after the Assembly session. None of the reports gave a date for that session.

To cover the gap until then, about 1,000 people will be hired on contract for one year, the chief minister said. He also announced a new Panchayat Bhavan on a five-acre plot in New Town, near the proposed sites of the new Assembly building and, according to PTI, the Calcutta High Court.

All the announcements at a glance

Announcement	Who it is for	When	Status
Return home, work 125 days, ₹34,500 a year per job card	Migrant workers and job card holders	Scheme running since 1 July	Appeal and promise by the CM
7,190 panchayat posts through the PSC	Job seekers	By April 2027	Cabinet approval; rules still to change
1,000 contract staff	Panchayat department	For one year	Announced
New Panchayat Bhavan, five acres, New Town	Department offices	No date given	Plan
Booklet of 375 work schemes	Rural residents	No date given	Published, says the CM

The booklet will be taken to villages and the schemes in it promoted with folk music, Suvendu Adhikari said, according to PTI. Panchayat Minister Dilip Ghosh said 47 lakh beneficiaries who, he said, had been left without houses under the previous government would get homes under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, the central rural housing scheme, over the next two years.

How far VB-G RAM G has reached in West Bengal

All three reports gave the same work figure for VB-G RAM G in the state: 65.62 lakh person-days so far. A person-day is one person working for one day. PTI reported that the state is working towards a target of 22 crore person-days set by the Centre.

Other numbers from the briefing differ between reports, so each version is given here with its source:

• Work each day: PTI reported daily employment had reached 7.09 lakh. The Indian Express reported the chief minister as saying 22 lakh people were getting work every day.
• Money: PTI reported work allocations of ₹12,000 crore made jointly by the Centre and the state. The Indian Express reported an allocation of more than ₹13,000 crore, with ₹8,000 crore from the Centre and ₹5,000 crore from the state, and said the Centre had released ₹1,200 crore as the first instalment.
• Job cards: The chief minister said 31 lakh fake job cards had been cancelled under the old scheme and about 10 lakh new cards issued since, according to PTI and the Indian Express. The Week reported the cancelled cards as 13 lakh.

Dilip Ghosh said the government wants to raise daily employment to 10 lakh by December, with an eventual goal of 17 lakh, PTI and The Week reported. Adhikari said the department would become a “model department” within two years.

What returning workers and job seekers should know

Many workers from the state look for jobs in other states, particularly in cities such as Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, The Week noted. For Bengal migrant workers thinking of coming back, the promise rests on holding a job card and getting work under the scheme in their home area. None of the reports read explained how a returning worker should register for work, which office to approach, or whether there is any deadline. The state government had not put out a release on the briefing in the material NewsPlainly could open; this article relies on the PTI, Indian Express and The Week reports.

For job seekers following Bengal panchayat recruitment, the 7,190 posts are not open yet. The rules have to change first, and the reports did not give a notification date. The PSC will run the recruitment, according to the chief minister. More West Bengal government news is on the NewsPlainly West Bengal page.

Frequently asked questions

How much will job card holders in West Bengal get under VB-G RAM G?

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said ₹34,500 a year is guaranteed for each job card holder, according to PTI. By NewsPlainly's calculation that is ₹2,875 a month, or ₹276 a day if all 125 days are worked.

When will the 7,190 Bengal panchayat posts be filled?

The chief minister said the recruitment, through the Public Service Commission, should be complete by April 2027. The recruitment rules are to be changed after an Assembly session; no notification date was given.

How can a migrant worker returning to Bengal get work?

The scheme gives work to holders of a job card. The reports of the briefing did not explain how a returning worker should register or which office to approach, and no state release was available to NewsPlainly.