The party’s data analytics chief, Praveen Chakravarty, one of those involved in shaping up of the scheme along with former union minister P Chidambaram, said that once the Congress comes to power, a committee will be formed to roll out the scheme.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday announced a minimum income guarantee of Rs 72,000 per year for the poor. Making the announcement at the party headquarters, Gandhi said that the scheme, which will reach out to 20% of the country’s population or 25 crore people in 5 crore families, will be a “final assault on poverty”.
“This is a historic scheme which has not happened anywhere in the world. It is an extremely powerful, ground-breaking and well-thought through idea. We have consulted many economists on the scheme. It will be a fiscally prudent,” he said. “The calculations have been done, the fiscal repercussions have been analysed, and the money is available. This scheme is perfectly doable. We are going to deliver this scheme.”
Gandhi said that after the UPA’s job guarantee MNREGA scheme uplifted 14 crore people from poverty, this will be the second phase of poverty alleviation in which another 25 crore people will be uplifted. He added that a team of experts have been working on it in the last few months. The party's Central Working Committee, which met on Monday, had green-lighted the scheme, after which Gandhi made the announcement.
The party’s data analytics chief, Praveen Chakravarty, one of those involved in shaping up of the scheme along with former union minister P Chidambaram, said that once the Congress comes to power, a committee will be formed to roll out the scheme.
“We will form a committee when we form the government, which will design the roll-out and implementation of the scheme. Secondly, we will involve the states, as this is a federal scheme. Next, we will run a pilot and then roll it out in phases,” Chakravarty told dna.
Chakravarty said that the income support, a direct benefit transfer one, will be a fixed one, contrary to reports. He said that using the income distribution data, the party has arrived at the number of beneficiaries. “We can safely say that most Indians will now earn at least Rs 12,000 per month, because most of them are earning Rs 6,000 per month under MNREGA already,” he said.
He added that there will be no pull-back on the 400 schemes that are currently running in India, and that the party has been working with experts internationally, ironing out various details in the last three months.
Sources added that the team did not calculate the margin of poverty based on economist Suresh Tendulkar poverty line, but the income distribution data of the NSSO report, which is yet to be released by the Centre. “Through the data, we found out that 20% people earn below Rs 12,000 per month, which is the bare minimum. We also relied on many other indices. The scheme will care for all the people who are trapped under the line,” said a party functionary. As per the 2009 Tendulkar poverty line, anyone who earns Rs 27 per day, or Rs 810 per month is considered poor.
Party sources added that after a pilot, which will test the implementation over a year, the initial phase of the roll-out will target the bottom 10% of families which are 2.5 crore in number. In the final phase, the rest of the beneficiaries will be transferred.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Rahul Gandhi with Praveen Chakravarty")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}