The problem
Central and state governments in India run more than 20,000 welfare schemes between them. Reporting based on Haqdarshak's data found that an average family uses only a small fraction.
Reaching a scheme is harder than it should be. People have not heard of it, or do not realise they qualify, or are missing one of the documents it asks for. In a 2011 survey across seven states, 72% of rural households did not know about MGNREGS, which was then the country's largest flagship programme.
Each scheme has its own rules and its own office. What a person needs is one answer in their own language: given who I am and the papers I have, what am I entitled to, and what do I do next?
- Who has this problem
- Low-income households, informal workers and micro businesses, in villages and cities.
- Languages needed
- Hindi and regional languages
Where the demand comes from
What people do today
- The workaround
- They rely on word of mouth, a local agent, or a visit to a government office.
- Why that fails
- Each scheme has its own eligibility rules, documents and office. Agents charge fees, and information reaches people late or not at all.
How others solved it2
Products and services that work on a similar problem, in India and elsewhere.
- HaqdarshakIndia
Field agents use an app to check a person's eligibility door to door and help them apply.
- mySchemeIndia
Government portal that lists schemes and filters them by a person's details.
Read and watch2
Where the facts on this page come from.