The crisis-ridden Congress leadership expects the direct cash transfer scheme, launched on January 1, to be a game-changer come 2014. But the situation on the ground is no longer as simple as it might seem to the UPA's spin doctors, writes KS Narayanan
Battered by a spate of scams and hobbled by policy paralysis, the UPA government is in desperate need of a lifeline. Its already sullied image was further dented when India erupted against the December 16 gangrape of a 23-year-old paramedic in south Delhi and the subsequent slothful response of the authorities to the heinous crime.
The girl's tragic death could not be dismissed as a mere crime statistic as the protest turned into a widespread anti-government agitation in Delhi and across the country. This is a sign that the urban wave that brought UPA II back to power in 2009 may now be turning against it.
With the mother of all battles – the General Elections – slated for 2014, the Congress leadership and the government have turned their energies towards a slew of welfare measures for the rural masses in the hope of offsetting the impact of the growing urban disenchantment with UPA-II. One such scheme is the Direct Cash Transfer that was kicked off by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and several Union cabinet ministers and chief ministers to woo rural voters in the face of urban discontent.
In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress won 115 seats in major metros and towns except in Bangalore. More than 377 million Indians live in cities and metros and the number of urban and semi urban seats has increased from 70 to 200 due to rapid urbanisation and a delimitation exercise.
With anti-corruption crusaders like Anna Hazare, Baba Ramdev and Arvind Kejriwal and his recently formed Aam Admi Party keeping up pressure on a defensive government, the Congress has embarked on an ambitious policy of Direct Cash Transfer (DCT). The party expects it to be a game-changer, a move that could help it reap electoral dividends the way farm loan waiver scheme and National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) did in 2004 and 2009 respectively.
DCT, much implemented in Latin America, has now become possible in India through the innovative use of technology and the spread of modern banking systems across the country. On paper, it is aimed at eliminating waste, cutting down leakages and targeting the beneficiaries better.
Rolling out DCT, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh noted: “Apart from these direct benefits, the government also provides an amount of over Rs 300,000 crore in subsidies which too must reach the right people.” A World Bank study recently reported that there is a direct link between cash transfers and voting behaviour and beneficiaries express a stronger preference for the ruling party that implements and expands cash transfers.
No wonder it has caught the fancy of Rahul Gandhi, the AICC General Secretary who wants party workers to take the catchy slogan ‘Aapka paisa, aapke haath’ (Your money, directly into your hands) to the people.
Battered by a spate of scams and hobbled by policy paralysis, the UPA government is in desperate need of a lifeline. Its already sullied image was further dented when India erupted against the December 16 gangrape of a 23-year-old paramedic in south Delhi and the subsequent slothful response of the authorities to the heinous crime.
The girl's tragic death could not be dismissed as a mere crime statistic as the protest turned into a widespread anti-government agitation in Delhi and across the country. This is a sign that the urban wave that brought UPA II back to power in 2009 may now be turning against it.
With the mother of all battles – the General Elections – slated for 2014, the Congress leadership and the government have turned their energies towards a slew of welfare measures for the rural masses in the hope of offsetting the impact of the growing urban disenchantment with UPA-II. One such scheme is the Direct Cash Transfer that was kicked off by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and several Union cabinet ministers and chief ministers to woo rural voters in the face of urban discontent.
In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress won 115 seats in major metros and towns except in Bangalore. More than 377 million Indians live in cities and metros and the number of urban and semi urban seats has increased from 70 to 200 due to rapid urbanisation and a delimitation exercise.
With anti-corruption crusaders like Anna Hazare, Baba Ramdev and Arvind Kejriwal and his recently formed Aam Admi Party keeping up pressure on a defensive government, the Congress has embarked on an ambitious policy of Direct Cash Transfer (DCT). The party expects it to be a game-changer, a move that could help it reap electoral dividends the way farm loan waiver scheme and National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) did in 2004 and 2009 respectively.
DCT, much implemented in Latin America, has now become possible in India through the innovative use of technology and the spread of modern banking systems across the country. On paper, it is aimed at eliminating waste, cutting down leakages and targeting the beneficiaries better.
Rolling out DCT, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh noted: “Apart from these direct benefits, the government also provides an amount of over Rs 300,000 crore in subsidies which too must reach the right people.” A World Bank study recently reported that there is a direct link between cash transfers and voting behaviour and beneficiaries express a stronger preference for the ruling party that implements and expands cash transfers.
No wonder it has caught the fancy of Rahul Gandhi, the AICC General Secretary who wants party workers to take the catchy slogan ‘Aapka paisa, aapke haath’ (Your money, directly into your hands) to the people.
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