Inside India’s Cash Transfer Election Strategy
By Raksha Kumar, Reporting Fellow
Since 2020, political candidates across India have promised that women in their states would get cash handouts – indefinitely – if they won their elections.
All it takes for women to get as much as 3,000 Indian rupees (about US$35) per month is to prove that their annual income is below a certain threshold, such as 120,000 rupees (about US$1,400). The transfers are simple thanks to Aadhar, India’s biometric system that links to a person’s bank account.
All told, 134 million women — a fifth of India’s adult female population — have received cash transfers, according to research by Axis Bank. And as of November 2024, an amount equivalent to 0.6% of India’s gross domestic product was spent on these programs. For context, the Indian government spent 1.9% of its GDP on health care in the 2023-2024 year.
Women say the money has transformed their lives. But the programs are unpredictable. Experts who research women voters worry that the men who promise the money can easily take it away.
About the Author
Raksha Kumar is a Global Press Reporting Fellow in India. Raksha is a multimedia human rights journalist, with a focus on land rights, identity politics and gender. She is a former NPR producer who has reported from 12 countries and 150 districts in India for The New York Times, The Guardian and The Hindu.
