Working for welfare

Abstract

Contributory social security schemes launched last week could be game changers. The prime minister launched three welfare-enhancing pension and insurance schemes on May 9. In a country where less than 10 per cent of the population has insurance cover and almost nobody in the unorganised sector has a pension plan, these three schemes are expected to play a significant role in providing social security for the poor.

Having successfully ensured, through the Jan Dhan Yojana, that more than 95 per cent of Indian households have bank accounts, the Central government has taken the next logical step by extending social security to the masses. This move comes close on the heels of the launch of Mudra Bank, mandated to ensure that adequate credit flows to micro units. The extension of these products will ensure business volumes for the banking industry, which will carry new instruments to the masses, and help in making financial inclusion commercially viable. The structure of the schemes entails contribution, though nominal, by individual subscribers. Read more at: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/narendra-modi-social-security-schemes-working-for-welfare/