20/11/2019 - Government Policies | Mainstorming

IAS Parliament 5 years

KEY POINTS

· It is true that inflation rates have been very low, and inflation on agricultural produce even lower during the last five years. Availability of Rs 2 per kg wheat and Rs 3 per kg rice has become a reality across the country under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).

· This has also been a period when public welfare programmes like rural housing, rural toilets, LPG connections under Ujjwala, electricity connections to households under Saubhagya, enrollment for bank account, accident and life insurance, have all happened on a larger scale.

· Swachh Bharat Mission toilets, enrolment in Ujjwala, Saubhagya, or in accident and life insurance, also draws on incomes/savings. It is bound to affect demand for goods purchased by the poor, in the short run.

· The allocation for rural development programmes has gone up considerably from Rs 50,162 crore in 2012-13 to Rs 1.18 lakh crore in 2019-20.

· Add to this the state shares, which have increased to 60:40 instead of 75:25 or 100 per cent (in the case of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana) from the central government for non-Himalayan states.

· The 14th Finance Commission’s grants to gram panchayats have been released on an unprecedented scale. Extra budgetary resources (EBRs) have also been mobilised for the housing programme.

· The improvement in rural road connectivity has also been a significant development of this period, leading to 97 per cent eligible and feasible habitations as per the 2001 Census getting all weather road connectivity.