To observe the completion of nine years of the Modi government the Press Information Bureau (PIB) across states and regions have been asked to organise events to highlight the success of different schemes of the central government. The idea is to jerk peoples’ memories lest they forget the several schemes that have ostensibly changed their lives for the better. Credit must be given where due and the one positive intervention of the Modi Government is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna where every adult citizen can open a bank account on easy terms and without having to maintain minimum balance. This bank account also assures the depositor an accident insurance cover of Rs two lakhs. The bank account also allows for direct benefit transfers to the account holder and that includes LPG subsidy among others. Before 2014 most rural residents did not have bank accounts and used to be harassed by government officials if they had to receive any benefits. Now the whole transaction is seamless.
The Swacch Bharat Mission kindled an awareness in Indians that they needed to be mindful of the propensity to defecate anywhere and everywhere. People who could not afford to construct toilets were assisted with government funds to do the same, especially in rural India. Some of the major rivers especially in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere were being cleaned up more as an awareness campaign so that people stop polluting rivers and for the purpose of environmental sustainability. The Jal Jeevan Mission with the promise of bringing piped water to every household – an ambitious mission is being tried out across the country. So much however, depends on state governments and their time-bound implementation of such schemes. In most cases there are time and cost overruns because of lack of robust supervision and accountability.
It is also during the tenure of the Modi Government that central ministers are visiting the states and going beyond the state capitals to the rural hamlets to interact with farmers and self- help groups. Hence the ministries are better informed about the development backlogs in every state. The state governments are therefore held accountable for delay in implementation of schemes. For the North Eastern states this was a new development. In the past central ministers never saw what a rural hamlet looked like in Meghalaya, Nagaland or Mizoram. The communication bottle-necks are being addressed and this is seen in the number of airports across the eight states. Today even Arunachal Pradesh is well connected by train and air. A lot depends on the states and their seriousness to get on the development bandwagon that the central government has set in motion. Unfortunately, corruption is a major handicap and that continues to afflict the north eastern states.
What the Modi Government might have to tread gently on are the environmental clearances for development projects especially in the fragile ecosystems of the hill states. This could cost heavily in the long term and create ecological disasters.