This article appeared on Ritam
The time period of 1942-47 found a curious mention by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in a speech last week while interacting with newly
elected MPs. Evoking the historic phase that galvanised the country against the
colonial rulers, Modi said that a similar mobilisation is now needed to win the
battle against poverty. Interestingly, this was the second consecutive speech
since his stunning victory in which he repeatedly mentioned poverty elimination
as a target.
India’s battle against poverty has seen several decades,
elections, governments, leaders and social changes. The mandate of 2019,
however, has changed India’s development linguistics. The mandate has rejected
the offer of short-term benefits and spoken in favour of enduring solutions.
The electorate has increasingly shown awareness of the fact that the problem
needs a holistic approach targeting the 350 million Below Poverty Line (BPL)
population and also encompassing the 400 million strong middle class.
It is a fact that the achievements of Modi’s first term have
laid the ground for substantial gains in his second term. Check on pilferages
and corruption, disbursement of benefits to more than 20 crore people and
implementation of transparency in governance are only some of these measures.
It was a result of these that the government was re-elected for a second time
with a bigger mandate. It is safe to say that no one is more aware of the
strength of this mandate than Narendra Modi himself who is likely to wage a
multi-pronged onslaught for revolutionary outcomes.