“Basic Income Should Have Maximum Inclusion”

Interview: “Basic Income Should Have Maximum Inclusion”.

- Neelam Gupta

SEWA Bharat Had Initiated a Unique Pilot Project on Cash-for-food (That Is, Cash Replacing PDS Goods) in Delhi Some Time Ago. However, the Basic Income Pilot Project in Madhya Pradesh Goes a Step Beyond That, Giving Cash to People Without Any Conditions. What Was the Genesis of This Project, What Prompted SEWA Bharat to Take It Up?  

For many years SEWA has been working on social security for the poor. For this, we have worked with governments at the centre and the states to frame the right policies. A number of social security schemes have been introduced but nothing has made the poor’s life easier. Reasons? one, barriers, and two, corruption. In every scheme to help the poor – PDS for food security, the beneficiary card for health or education, or loans for agriculture – there is a lot of paper work: yeh lao, vo lao, yeh proof, voh proof; a number of implementing agencies are involved and at every step, the beneficiary has to pay bribes. So, in spite of a plethora of welfare schemes, delivery is very little. In 2009, when talk of cash transfer was in air and there were so many arguments for and against it, SEWA took it as an opportunity and decided to carry out an experiment on the ground. To us it was an easy and clean way to help the poor. Cash transfer would be direct from the centre to the beneficiaries’ accounts. There would be no middlemen seeking bribes and people would also have the choice to buy goods and services as per their requirements – unlike the existing schemes, in which they don’t.