Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken about the importance he gives to Vishwakarma and Svanidhi, two schemes the government is banking on to help India’s informal workforce. The schemes for rural artisans and urban street vendors run alongside Ujjwala, which supplies subsidised cooking gas, and PM Kisan, which gives cash support to farmers, are significant in this election year.
The schemes—Modi promotes them as examples of his commitment to the poor—address four distinct bands of voters: artisans, street vendors, women in rural households, and farmers. For the BJP, these schemes can create a significant differentiator in the results for the