Modi Govt's Remarkable 12 Years

Those who have had a ringside seat to governance in the country for many decades, like this writer, must acknowledge that Modi is unique. Whether it's his energy, his focus, his “doordrishti” or his 360 degree approach to governance – he is a nonpareil – without a parallel.

How else can one account for the phenomenal strides Bharat has taken over the last 12 years in every field – be it infrastructure, poverty alleviation, economic growth, health care, industry, agriculture, foreign policy, defence and digital India or the breathtaking achievements on the social sector front.

The range of success is so vast that it is impossible to list everything in one column. So, it's best to focus on one area – schemes launched by PM Modi and meant to empower the poor and improve the quality of life of the marginalised sections of society.

Several of these initiatives adhere to the letter and spirit of the Directive Principles of State Policy in Articles 36 to 51 in Part Four of the Constitution to create a Welfare State and ease of living, especially for the poor.

One of the first path-breaking initiatives of PM Modi was the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana – the biggest financial inclusion initiative in the world – which he announced on August 15, 2014, within months of assuming charge as prime minister. That day, he said the scheme would liberate the poor and bring them within the ambit of the banking scheme. As of last month, a record 58 crore bank accounts have been opened under this programme.

Though most of these accounts are held by poor and marginalised individuals, the total deposits of the account holders are Rs 3.00 lakh crore, and 56 per cent of these accounts are held by women, promoting financial independence.

The next big thing PM Modi thought of was to provide a subsidy for the construction of toilets in BPL households under the Swachch Bharat Mission. It was launched on October 2, 2014, by Modi, specially keeping in mind the dignity of women. Thus far, it has covered 12.5 crore households.

The third major programme was the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana to provide subsidised LPG connections to poor households across the country, which was launched by Modi in 2016. Thus far, the government has covered 10.5 crore households. The number of subsidised cylinders has been reduced due to the Gulf War and will hopefully be restored when the flow of petroleum products is normalised.

Equally significant is the “Har Ghar Nal se Jal” programme to supply piped water to all rural households, which was launched on August 15, 2019, by PM Modi. Thus far, out of 19 crore rural households, 73 per cent have a functional tap water supply.

All these schemes flow out of PM Modi’s understanding of the plight of women, especially in poor rural households where they have to go out of their village to ease themselves and drudge many kilometres to find firewood to keep the kitchen fire burning and drinking water.

Then comes the most significant decision taken by the Modi government to provide free rations to 81 crore persons from January 1, 2024, under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. This was initially launched during the COVID crisis and was formalised later. The government has committed itself to this programme for five years.

No other nation can possibly ever replicate something like this on this scale. Ration shops existed over 50 years ago to provide subsidised rations to the people. Today, 81 crore people get free rations. Every Indian must be proud of the fact that this nation is able to execute such a humongous programme to alleviate poverty.

All these three schemes are aimed at bringing about ease of living, especially for women. In fact, women’s empowerment is the cornerstone of the policies of the Modi government. Apart from this, the government has pushed ahead with legislation for one-third reservation of seats for women in legislative assemblies and parliament and has given women permanent commission in the armed forces. The first batch of 17 women officers trained at the National Defence Academy were commissioned in the armed forces recently.

The sensitivity of the government to women’s issues is best exemplified by its decision to amend the Maternity Benefit Act in 2017 and increase the maternity leave available to women with salary from 12 weeks to 26 weeks (six months) for the first two children and 12 weeks for later children. This is meant to protect the employment and salaries of women in the reproductive age group.

Just look at these schemes and the mandate given by the Constitution in the Directive Principles since 1950 to our federal and state governments.

These Articles direct the State to ensure adequate livelihood for all citizens and specifically direct the State to raise the level of nutrition and improve public health (Article 47); secure just and humane conditions of work and provide maternity relief (Article 42); and to ensure a living wage and decent standard of living (Article 43).

Thus, whether it is the supply of free rations to 81 crore people, Ayushman Bharat health insurance for the poor and elderly, six months maternity leave for women, subsidy for the construction of toilets in homes or the Jan Dhan Yojana, all of them seek to fulfil the mandate of the Constitution.

This is indeed a truly remarkable achievement as Modi becomes India's longest-serving elected Prime Minister, surpassing 4,399 days. The opposition has a point when it says that social tensions have not been resolved by the prime minister. They also have legitimate grievances in regard to the functioning of institutions in the country.

These are issues which the prime minister must address as he marches ahead. But it would be churlish to deny him credit for the humongous success he has achieved in a plethora of fields. His opponents sound less credible when they fail to acknowledge India’s standing in the comity of nations today, the spectacular achievements on the economic front (10 th largest economy in 2014, fourth largest today), Infrastructure (Access-controlled Expressways in 2014 - 93 kms, now 3694 kms; Airports in 2014 – 74, now 164) or the spectacular digital revolution he has brought about.

And don’t forget the abrogation of Article 370 and complete integration of Jammu & Kashmir, and the determination with which Narendra Modi & Amit Shah have got rid of a festering sore called Naxalism. The progress of India is highly visible in every field, and nobody can miss it. Those who pretend this is not true are only fooling themselves. The people are living in a new, advanced Bharat!

(Disclaimer: The author is an expert on democratic issues and a senior columnist. The views expressed are his own and are not endorsed by The Daily Jagran.)