{"id":349502,"date":"2025-11-08T07:33:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-08T02:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?page_id=349502"},"modified":"2025-11-08T07:33:23","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T02:03:23","slug":"answered-critically-analyze-the-proposition-to-place-universal-basic-income-ubi-at-the-centre-of-indias-welfare-architecture-justify-its-necessity-in-addressing-a-crisis-ridden-world","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answered-critically-analyze-the-proposition-to-place-universal-basic-income-ubi-at-the-centre-of-indias-welfare-architecture-justify-its-necessity-in-addressing-a-crisis-ridden-world\/","title":{"rendered":"[Answered] Critically analyze the proposition to place Universal Basic Income (UBI) at the centre of India’s welfare architecture. Justify its necessity in addressing a crisis-ridden world."},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction
\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Rising inequality, job-displacing automation, and climate-linked distress threaten economic security. With India\u2019s top 1% owning 40% of wealth (WID, 2023),<\/strong> placing Universal Basic Income at the welfare centre demands urgent evaluation.<\/p>\n

UBI at the Centre of Welfare Architecture: A Critical Analysis<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. India\u2019s welfare architecture is extensive\u2014over 1,000 centrally sponsored schemes<\/strong>\u2014yet plagued by leakages, duplication, and exclusion errors<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  2. As per an IMF study (2019), almost 40% of benefits in targeted schemes fail to reach beneficiaries<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  3. In such a fragmented ecosystem, UBI offers a simple, rules-based, unconditional cash transfer<\/strong> to every citizen, replacing paternalism with autonomy.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Why UBI? The context of a crisis-ridden world<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    1. Wealth and income inequality<\/strong>: World Inequality Database (2023): Wealth Gini at 75<\/strong>, highest since Independence. Top 10% hold 77% of national wealth<\/strong>. GDP growth (8.4% in 2023\u201324) <\/strong>has not led to shared prosperity<\/strong>. Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz argues GDP does not measure equity or well-being<\/strong>. India\u2019s rank 126\/137<\/strong> in the World Happiness Report<\/em><\/strong> (2023)<\/strong><\/em> reveals precarity beneath high growth.<\/li>\n
    2. Automation and job loss<\/strong>: McKinsey Global Institute warns 800 million jobs globally may be displaced by 2030<\/strong>. India\u2019s workforce\u201480% informal\u2014is especially vulnerable.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
      UBI = Security during AI driven economic restructuring<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
        \n
      1. Gig economy precarity: <\/strong>NITI Aayog (2022): Gig workers to reach 2.35 crore by 2030<\/strong>. No job security, no insurance, no benefits. A periodic cash transfer stabilizes household consumption and preserves dignity.<\/li>\n
      2. Climate-driven volatility<\/strong>: IPCC: India loses 1% of GDP annually<\/strong> to climate-linked shocks. UBI can act as \u201cshock-responsive social protection.\u201d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Economic Rationale: Not charity, but investment<\/strong><\/h2>\n

        Pilot experiments prove UBI improves human capital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
        Study\/Location<\/strong><\/td>\nResult<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
        SEWA UBI trial, Madhya Pradesh (2011\u201313)<\/td>\nBetter nutrition, higher school attendance, increased earning capacity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
        Finland UBI trial (2017\u201318)<\/td>\nBetter mental health, greater job search activity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
        Kenya GiveDirectly<\/td>\nGrowth in micro-enterprise and consumption<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

        UBI does not reduce willingness to work<\/strong> \u2014 a key misconception disproved globally.<\/p>\n

        How UBI strengthens India\u2019s welfare state<\/strong><\/h2>\n
          \n
        1. Universality avoids exclusion error<\/strong>: Targeting creates errors; universality prevents \u201cwrongful exclusions.\u201d Aadhaar\u2013DBT\u2013Jan Dhan trinity makes real-time transfers feasible<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
        2. Restores dignity and autonomy<\/strong>: Shifts welfare from conditional patronage<\/strong> to rights-based entitlement<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
        3. Corrects gendered invisibility of labour<\/strong>: A UBI acknowledges unpaid domestic work, performed largely by women. Tamil Nadu\u2019s \u20b91,000\/month entitlement for women<\/strong> is a step toward gendered UBI.<\/li>\n
        4. Reduces political populism<\/strong>: UBI can curb competitive \u201cfreebie politics,\u201d shifting governance from clientelism to citizenship accountability<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Concerns and Caution<\/strong><\/h2>\n
            \n
          1. Fiscal space<\/strong>: A UBI matching the poverty line (~\u20b97,620\/year\/person) costs 5% of GDP<\/strong>.
            \nFunding options: Rationalise non-merit subsidies (Economic Survey 2016\u201317), Wealth tax on top 1% and Carbon tax framework.<\/li>\n
          2. Universality vs. targeting: <\/strong>A phased approach: begin with women, elderly, disabled, and gig workers<\/strong>. UBI must complement<\/strong>, not replace essential public services like MGNREGA, PDS.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n

            As Amartya Sen asserts, development expands freedoms<\/strong>. UBI offers economic security amid automation and inequality\u2014building a resilient, citizen-centric welfare state capable of protecting dignity in uncertain futures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Introduction Rising inequality, job-displacing automation, and climate-linked distress threaten economic security. With India\u2019s top 1% owning 40% of wealth (WID, 2023), placing Universal Basic Income at the welfare centre demands urgent evaluation. UBI at the Centre of Welfare Architecture: A Critical Analysis India\u2019s welfare architecture is extensive\u2014over 1,000 centrally sponsored schemes\u2014yet plagued by leakages, duplication,… Continue reading [Answered] Critically analyze the proposition to place Universal Basic Income (UBI) at the centre of India’s welfare architecture. Justify its necessity in addressing a crisis-ridden world.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-349502","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/349502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=349502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/349502\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=349502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}