Wooing Voters and Unemployment Woes

Fr. Gaurav Nair Fr. Gaurav Nair
29 Apr 2024

The BJP-led government often highlights India's rapid economic growth since 2014. However, it's important to note that this growth is not solely due to their policies. Ten years ago, India was the tenth-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $1.9 trillion. Today, despite the pandemic, it is the 5th largest, with a GDP of $3.7 trillion. The Finance Ministry predicts that India will become the third-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $5 trillion within the next three years and will approach $7 trillion by 2030.

For the obtuse, it must be pointed out that an economy's growth does not ride on only a few factors or even a short period. It is the cumulative result of all policies since decades ago. India had just started liberalising its economy after narrow and untrusting policies immediately following Independence when Modi came to power and implemented reforms that only benefitted a few. To top it all off, he introduced two disasters, demonetisation and GST reforms, which would accelerate the accumulation of power and wealth into his grubby paws. The pandemic and lockdowns he implemented became the icing on the cake. In fact, the BJP's policies have only hurt India and hampered its growth. What we see today is an internally unstable economy puppeteered by a few.

One of the determinants used to project India's growth is its demographics, which are among the youngest in the world. However, specific reports assert that almost half of those voting in a government now are unemployed, of which a staggering 83 per cent are young. In fact, unemployment has increased since the BJP came into power. The government has failed to provide jobs and security for its younger citizens. BJP-supported businesspeople have seen a meteoric rise owing to its wretched policies that have only guaranteed a situation of inequity of power and wealth. Such an economy is, unfortunately, neither sustainable nor progressive. The government should have focussed on balanced and inclusive growth policies for the longer term.

The government has, until now, swept the problems under the rug by providing welfare to those in need and distracting the citizens with imbecilic ideas like the promise of temples and vulgar narratives like those delivered by Modiji in Banswara. But this is not a long-term solution to its crises. Spreading misinformation through suppressing mainstream media and inundating social media through its brainless minions might have sustained it for a time, but it has not immobilised the reality it is trying to conceal.

It is manifest that only some have fallen for its shenanigans or are disillusioned in the face of truth; moreover, its intensity and coverage are currently indeterminable. Though disgruntlement has been growing visibly among the unemployed, especially the youth, it is impossible to conclude that it will upturn the current incumbency. Nevertheless, the current blues will assuredly cause some trepidation as they shake a few pillars holding up the BJP's canopy.

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