DNA Edit: Poverty and votes - Rahul’s NYAY promises the moon to the poor

In the election season, poverty sells like hot cake. It’s the driving force for an array of competitive populism practised by political parties of all hues. Seventy two years have gone by since Independence, yet poverty refuses to leave the country. Now Congress President Rahul Gandhi has come up with a ‘masterstroke’ of minimum income scheme for the poor that’s going to cost the exchequer Rs 3.60 lakh crore annually. The 20 per cent of the poorest of the poor families will each get Rs 72,000 in a year, which will bring the minimum monthly income to Rs 6,000. The scheme is women-centric and the money will be directly transferred to their accounts. Gandhi has attempted to tick all the right boxes. But in the era of subsidies, his grand plan will put a huge strain on the economy. Consider this: After thousands of crores of farm loan waivers, and the various pro-poor/farmer schemes of the BJP government, including the direct benefit transfer (DBT) of subsidies to the bank accounts of beneficiaries of welfare schemes to the tune of Rs 1.1 lakh crore, can Gandhi’s Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY) be sustained? Or is the Congress thinking of ending all existing subsidies for NYAY if it comes to power? There is no doubt that MGNREGA in 2005 was a game-changer for the Congress Party. It aimed at not only providing employment to the rural poor, but also focussed on asset creation. A lot has changed since then.

In 2019, Indians are desperately looking for jobs. Unemployment rate had risen to 7.2 per cent in February 2019, the highest since September 2016, and up from 5.9 per cent in February 2018, according to data compiled by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). Though carried out with the best of intentions, both demonetisation and GST rendered body blows to the Indian economy, especially its unorganised sectors, which provide livelihoods to millions. India’s unemployment rate rose to its highest level in at least 45 years in 2017-18. If the Congress and the BJP think that subsidy is an offset against a ballooning job crisis, they are only looking at short-term gains. Despite the many impediments, India has made significant progress on the human development index. The Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) report 2018, bears testimony to that. India has “reduced its poverty rate drastically from 55 per cent to 28 per cent in 10 years. Some 271 million people moved out of poverty between 2005/6 and 2015/16”. Still, the country is home to the largest number of people (364 million) living in multidimensional poverty. Any poverty alleviation programme should focus on providing employment opportunities. It not only restores a person’s self-respect but makes her a participant of the nation’s march to prosperity. India’s rapid population growth has been a huge challenge for policymakers. It has also given birth to extreme inequalities. Some pockets in states like UP and Bihar are marked by deep poverty and malnutrition. What India needs now is equitable, inclusive growth.