'Radical change needed in Centre, states' duties towards social sector'

Economic Survey recommends re-imposition of conditions on transfer of funds from Centre to states

The Economic Survey provides a two-step intellectual argument for tectonic shift in the centre and states’ responsibility towards social and regional development. Positing as an explorative exercise, the chief economic advisor (CEA) and his team leans towards a universal basic income that gradually replaces existing social schemes and subsidies. Alongside this step, the survey also suggests re-imposition of conditions on the funds transferred by the centre to the state. The survey recommends conditions linked to improvement in state’s tax efforts and the governance.

The country has witnessed one set of structural impacts under the NDA government on the social sector