Defeating Poverty: Jan Dhan and Beyond

Defeating Poverty: Jan Dhan and Beyond

Defeating Poverty: Jan Dhan and Beyond

Author: Sameer Kochhar

Pages:

ISSN: 978-81-929172-0-7

Language: English

Edition: First

Pub. Year: 2014

It examines why so many years after Independence, India still has a large number of poor and points towards vote-bank politics as a key culprit in choosing poor policy options that could never deliver optimally.

Poverty alleviation measures adopted by Narendra Modi during his tenure as Chief Minister of Gujarat, were a greater success compared to other states. The book identifies the key success factors for financial inclusion – a credit and livelihood-based approach as well as a gendered view of inclusion; sustainable development; skill development; financial literacy; push for MSMEs; employment and focus on hygiene and health. Thus, making the Modi model, called ModiNomics, as one of the proven approaches that can take financial inclusion to its logical conclusion. The model comes close to the author’s academic work, understanding of ModiNomics and years of research that has a great potential for its replication nationally.

Given that the end objective of financial inclusion is poverty alleviation, at Skoch Group, we have been unyielding in our advocacy of equitable growth with the three critical elements attached to it: financial, social and digital inclusion. The book proposes a model for bringing all these elements together and also suggests ways for the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana to be financially viable, self-sustaining and emerge as India’s main weapon for defeating poverty.

Reforms historian and author of the best-seller ModiNomics, Sameer Kochhar is Chairman, SKOCH Group. He is a passionate advocate of social, digital, and financial inclusion and is a foremost expert on governance and inclusive growth.

His work has been acclaimed globally and endorsed by Narendra Modi, M. Venkaiah Naidu, Manmohan Singh, Arun Jaitley, P. Chidambaram, Yashwant Sinha, C. Rangarajan and Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

In his thinking, writings, and activities, his profound admiration for India’s economic reforms and, by extension, those outstanding personalities who strive to make these reforms more meaningful and broad-based comes out clearly and unambiguously.

He has published over 17 volumes, the most notable being India 2030: A Socio-Economic Paradigm; ModiNomics; Defeating Poverty: Jan Dhan and Beyond; and Modi’s Odyssey: Digital India, Developed India.