IMF praises India, says its social welfare programmes are Logistical Marvel

Washington: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has praised India for its economic performance calling it a shining star, while the entire world is reeling under the shadows of economic recession. However, the chief economic advisor at the IMF suggested that to achieve a goal of a ten trillion-dollar economy, India would need to make structural reforms. At the same time, the IMF claimed that India’s welfare scheme for channelizing direct assistance to the poor in such a giant country was a ‘logistics marvel’, a miracle achieved on the supply management front. The IMF urged other countries to learn from this.

The situation created by the Ukraine war is adversely affecting the whole world. The economies of major countries worldwide are at risk due to a shortage of food grains and fuel and disruption of the supply chain necessary for manufacturing. Economists are warning that even a superpower like the United States will face recession, while other countries will also get caught in the vortex of economic recession. But in such circumstances, India is shining like a bright star with its economy performing well, said Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, Chief Economic Adviser at the IMF. Even earlier, the IMF had concluded that the Indian economy would grow the fastest in the next financial year among major countries.

Currently, India has overtaken Great Britain to become the fifth-largest economy in the world. But Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said India would have to make constructive economic reforms to take its economy to ten trillion dollars. India has already initiated some of these reforms. But in the future, this process will have to be accelerated. Perry-Oliver Gourinchas added that India has the potential to become a $10 trillion economy. Gourinchas particularly appreciated the progress made by India on the digitization front.

India is hosting the G-20 summit next year. Perry-Oliver Gourinchas pointed out that given the current geopolitical developments around the world, organizing this conference will not be easy. But Gourinchas also expressed his belief that if India succeeds in bringing the major countries together for this conference, it will be a significant achievement. Meanwhile, Paolo Mauro, Deputy Director of the Fiscal Affairs Department of the IMF, has generously praised the welfare schemes implemented by India to provide direct assistance to the poor, saying that this is a logistic Marvel, i.e., a miracle on the supply front.

India implemented Direct Benefit Transfer-DBT to ensure that the welfare schemes’ aid reached the intended beneficiaries. The DBT ensures direct bank transfer to beneficiary’s bank accounts which maintains transparency and avoids embezzlement by middlemen, said Paolo Mauro.

From 2013 till now, the Government of India has provided an amount of ₹24.8 trillion to its people through welfare schemes. In the financial year 2021-22 alone, India had aided ₹6.3 trillion to the needy. These welfare schemes for women, the elderly, and farmers directly benefit the needy. Providing such assistance is nothing short of a miracle in a large country with a massive population like India. India made this possible by using modern technology. Paolo Mauro said that using a Unique Identification System like an Aadhaar card should be a case study for other countries.