Jagran Opinion: Modi Govt's Welfare Policies Reflection Of Constitution's Directive Principles

In a developing nation like India, every government’s commitment to the principle that governments are "for" the people needs to be tested on the anvil of its commitment to the idea of a welfare state and the establishment of a just society that guarantees economic and social justice.

This is in line with the advice given by Dr BR Ambedkar, the Chairman of the Constitution-drafting committee. He said mere political equality would not suffice. India’s democracy would be in peril if the State did not ensure social and economic equality as well.

India’s constitution-makers have written an elaborate advisory to achieve social and economic justice in Part IV of the Constitution titled "Directive Principles of State Policy". Unlike the fundamental rights in Part III, this part has been declared "non-justifiable"; yet, Part IV plays a critical role in equalising opportunities for all citizens.

This is where a government’s commitment to public welfare is tested, and over the years, several governments at the federal level and in the states have tried to implement policies that are in line with these principles.

However, looking at the policies pursued by the government since 2014 and the commitment with which targets have been set and achieved, Prime Minister Narendra Modi would emerge way ahead of all his predecessors in realising the dreams of India’s founding fathers vis-à-vis social justice.

The Modi government has taken major initiatives to promote well-being of families including subsidized housing (PM Awas Yojana launched in 2015 has built 2.62 crore homes), subsidized domestic gas connections to families (PM Ujjwala Yojana launched in 2016 has covered 10.33 crore homes), tap water connections to these households (Jal Jeevan Mission launched in 2019 has covered 15.60 crore households), subsidy for construction of toilets in these homes (Swachch Bharat- 11 core homes covered), health insurance for the entire family (Ayushman Bharat) and accident insurance.

In addition, the government has achieved spectacular success while providing Aadhaar Cards to 94 crore citizens. All this is part of Modi’s commitment to ensure ease of living for all citizens.

But the biggest and most spectacular scheme ever launched by any government in the world is the food security scheme in India. The Modi government has committed itself to providing food to a mind-boggling 81 crore people every month until the year 2028. Every person is entitled to five Kilos of wheat/rice per month.

This is meant to ensure that no person goes to bed without a meal. The number of beneficiaries of this ration programme is much more than the population of South and North America and Europe. This scheme was launched long years ago, but Mr.Modi has scaled it up and extended its delivery right up to 2028. This scheme is aligned to the directive given in Article 47, which says the primary duty of the State is to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of the people.

PM-Kisan Yojana covers 11 crore beneficiaries and is meant to provide monetary relief to farmers all over the country. The Aadhaar Card ensures the transfer of these subsidies directly to the accounts of the beneficiaries. There are several other such schemes like the Shram Yogi Maandaan Yojana (2019) and the Lakhpati Didi initiative (2024).

The first major initiative taken by the Modi government, soon after he assumed charge to meet the goals set by the directive principles, was to launch the Jan Dhan Yojana in 2014, which now has 56.29 crore accounts. This is a revolutionary financial inclusion scheme which has enabled the poorest of the poor to open and operate bank accounts.

See how all this aligns with Article 38, which directs the State “to eliminate inequalities in status, facilities and opportunities,” and Article 43, which stipulates that the State must ensure “a decent standard of life” for the people. Article 38 elaborates on the theme of a Welfare State and directs the State to ensure a social order in which justice, social, economic and political, shall inform all the institutions of the national life.

Article 39 takes this idea further. It says that all citizens have the right to an adequate means of livelihood, and the ownership and control of the material resources of the community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good, and the operation of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment.

The wide range of social sector initiatives taken by the Modi government is in tune with the objectives set for governments by those who wrote the constitution. While these are general schemes providing for the entire family, the package for women and children is particularly notable.

In 2017, the Maternity Benefit Act was amended to provide working women with 26 weeks of leave after childbirth. This is absolutely revolutionary, and few countries in the world have such an extended leave facility stretching up to six and a half weeks. The Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana scheme, started in 2017, has so far covered 3.69 crore women.

It provides financial support for pregnant and lactating mothers to improve the health and nutrition of the mother and child, as well as compensation for wage loss. For children, you have the Integrated Child Development Scheme to provide mid-day meals to crores of school-going children. See how this fits in with Article 39, which says the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused and Article 42, which says the State shall make provision “for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief”.

There are also major, path-breaking initiatives in the health sector. The health insurance plan for families is a great boon to underprivileged citizens because it provides a cover of Rs 5 lakhs per year per family. This scheme, launched in 2018 and called Ayushman Bharat, has already covered over 41 crore cardholders. The PM Suraksha Bima Yojana, launched in 2015 to provide accident insurance cover, has over 51 crore cardholders. This is in tune with the directive in Article 47, which says the primary duty of the state is to ensure improvement of public health.

This is indeed a good time to recall this phenomenal pursuit of social justice by the prime minister because September 17 marks Modi ji’s 75th birthday. While conveying our very best wishes to him, we must hope and pray for the completion of all these schemes during his tenure to ensure justice, equality and ease of living for all citizens, as envisioned by our constitution makers.

(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.)