The honorable Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi inaugurating the Odisha government’s ‘Subhadra Yojana’, a women-oriented welfare program, and laying foundation stones for much-talked-tumbling mega infrastructure projects involving over thousands of crores of rupees is a definite positive societal change in Odisha. The scheme, which proposes to deposit Rs 50,000 to each of the eligible women over the period of five years and is meant for women aged 21 to 60 years, has attracted vast attention, and 76.48 lakh women have applied for it. But as with any large-scale welfare initiative, it begs the question: To what extent can Subhadra Yojana be regarded as a women’s welfare program?
On face value, Subhadra Yojana appears to be an attempt of the Odisha government to combat the emerging need for the financial independence of women. The scheme which has an assurance to provide Rs 10,000 annually in the bank accounts of beneficiaries is to help women in the state financially. If well administered this would provide a way through which women could earn an income for themselves as well as improve the status of the homes by perhaps investing in petty businesses.
But this policy, as many other related policies of various governments, may well become just an empty and meaningless headline if it is not supported by further fundamental changes. Although Rs. 50,000 for five years can be a sort of empowering amount, it cannot bring about any significant change in the lives of the women without covering all the aspects of empowering them. To sum it up, empowering girls for women means not only in terms of monetary assistance but also including their rights like education, health, employment, and an environment in which they can grow.
A similar challenge was seen in the Ujjwala Yojana, which aimed to provide LPG connections to rural households. While the scheme successfully reached millions of women, due to the high refill costs the scheme stood underutilized, demonstrating that long-term success requires addressing affordability and access issues. Without resolving the underlying problems, even well-intentioned schemes can fall short of their potential.
It is quite interesting to analyze the timing of the launch of the Subhadra Yojana. However, amid this political competition in Odisha, one may not rule out the electoral purposes of such a scheme. Such direct cash transfer welfare schemes included in the budget have in the past been considered as vote-collecting tools particularly where the targeted group is so staggeringly large as this one. They also do not help to balance this perception with the optics of a women-centric scheme launched alongside massive infrastructure projects.
The commitment of Rs 3,800 crore for railway and highway projects including `1,000 crore for national highway projects exemplifies to establishment of infrastructure development in Odisha. Undoubtedly, these projects have positive impacts in terms of sustainability, employment opportunities, and economic development in the long run. Nevertheless, they are still far away and mere promises, the implementations of which are regulated by time-consuming paperwork and frequently threatened by budget restraints. In contrast, the Subhadra Yojana offers immediate, tangible benefits, making it a more attractive proposition for the everyday voter.
Furthermore, one has to look at the question of how efficiently those funds will be managed: A large number of people running various welfare programs are disappointed due to mismanagement, corruption, or delay in fund release. Appropriate supervision measures should therefore be undertaken to ensure that the funds get to the rightful beneficiaries and are used as planned. If not, the scheme runs the risk of being reduced to a hollow promise, more about optics than outcomes.
There’s also a need to critically assess the long-term sustainability of schemes like Subhadra Yojana. With the funds allocated over a span of five years, it remains to be seen whether the government will follow through on its promises or if it will become another half-baked welfare initiative abandoned mid-way. While over Rs 1,250 crore has already been transferred to the bank accounts of 25 lakh women, sustaining this momentum and ensuring every registered beneficiary receives their due is essential to the scheme's success.
While the Subhadra Yojana seems like a good start, it must be part of a broader, more comprehensive effort to genuinely empower women. While such petty solutions can provide short-term relief and serve as a promise to the general public that the government is making efforts for their benefit, it definitely cannot be the sole pillar of the deep-seated inequality bridge. Long-term structural reforms addressing education, healthcare, employment, and social norms are required to be paired with such schemes to make an actual impact. Only then can the Subhadra Yojana move beyond political symbolism and become a meaningful step toward real empowerment.
