MINIMUM INCOME SUPPORT PROGRAMME or NYUNTAM AAY YOJANA (NYAY)

The abolition of poverty remains the foremost goal of the Congress. We recall with pride that the Congress-led UPA government lifted 14 crore people out of poverty between 2004 and 2014.

It is true that rapid and broad-based growth will reduce poverty, and, in the medium to long term, eliminate poverty. On the other hand, decisive and focused intervention has the capacity to eliminate poverty within a decade. Congress, therefore, sets the goal of elimination of abject poverty by the year 2030.

  1. Congress believes that the size of India’s GDP and the level of Total Expenditure (Central and State Governments) allow us to undertake an ambitious programme of cash transfer to the poorest sections of the people, without, in any way, affecting the goal of fiscal prudence. The main features of the Minimum Income Support Programme (MISP) or Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY) will be:
    1. The target population will be 5 crore families who constitute the poorest 20 per cent of all families. They will be the beneficiaries of MISP or NYAY;
    2.  Each family will be guaranteed a cash transfer of Rs. 72,000 a year;
    3. As far as possible, the money will be transferred to the account of a woman of the family who has a bank account, or who will be urged to open a bank account;
    4. There will a Design Phase (3 months), followed by Pilot and Testing Phases (6-9 months) before the rollout;
    5. The rollout will be implemented in phases;
    6.  The estimated cost will be <1 per cent of GDP in Year 1 and <2 per cent of GDP in Year 2 and thereafter;    
    7. As the nominal GDP grows and families move out of poverty, the cost will decline as a proportion of GDP. 
  2. Congress will appoint an independent panel of eminent economists, social scientists, and statisticians to oversee the design, testing, rollout and implementation of the programme. The programme will move from one stage to the other only after a ‘go-ahead’ from the panel. Congress intends to implement NYAY as a joint scheme of the Central and State Governments. The scheme will be funded through new revenues and rationalisation of expenditure. Current merit subsidy schemes that are intended to achieve specific objectives will be continued.
  3. The Congress goal is that ‘No Indian Family Shall Be Left Behind.’
  • KAAM

    Employment And Growth

  • DAAM

    An Economy That
    Works For All

  • SHAAN

    Pride In Our Hard
    And Soft Power

  • SAMMAN

    A Life Of
    Dignity For All

  • SUSHASAN

    Governance, Transparency And Accountability

  • SWABHIMAAN

    Self Esteem For
    The Deprived