The Congress government has hit the ground running, thanks to its ‘5G’ card that propelled it to power in Karnataka. While factors like anti-incumbency, shift in Vokkaliga and Lingayat votes, and consolidation of OBC, dalit and Muslim votes worked in its favour, it was the promise of five guarantee (freebies) schemes that helped the Congress sweep the polls.
The five guarantees are: 200 units of free power to every household every month under Gruha Jyothi Yojana; 10 kilos of free rice to every member of every family below poverty line under Anna Bhagya Yojana; free bus travel for women under Shakti Yojana; financial assistance of ₹2,000 per month to housewives under Gruha Laxmi Yojana; and ₹3,000 to graduates and ₹1,500 to diploma holders as monthly unemployment benefit under Yuva Nidhi Yojana.
The freebies were announced with much fanfare during the election campaign. And, Siddaramaiah and D.K. Shivakumar had handed out signed copies of the guarantee card to every household, saying the schemes would be implemented soon after the first cabinet meeting. But the entire exercise is proving to be a daunting task. Two cabinet meetings down, the government is struggling to identify genuine beneficiaries. Moreover, the schemes would cost the state exchequer about ₹56,000 crore every year.
During the polls, the door-to-door distribution of ‘5G’ cards had unnerved the BJP, prompting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to say that the promise of freebies would drown the state in debt. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah declared that the first cabinet meeting had given “in-principle approval” to the five guarantee schemes. In response to Modi’s jibe, he said that the country’s debt burden had increased by ₹103 lakh crore under the Modi government.
This story is from the June 11, 2023 edition of THE WEEK India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 11, 2023 edition of THE WEEK India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.
