Scheme: With the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme, crores of poor families of the country have got direct benefit of welfare schemes on one side, while curbing the disturbances, it has helped the country to save Rs 3.48 lakh crore. In such a situation, this system was beneficial for both the poor man and the government. This has been said in a report by Blueraft Digital Foundation. The report, shared by the Finance Ministry, evaluates data from 2009 to 2024 to rationalize budgetary efficiency, to rationalize subsidy and check the impact of Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) on social results.
The report said, “India’s DBT system has helped the country to get a savings of Rs 3.48 lakh crore by stopping the disturbances in welfare distribution. Since the implementation of DBT, subsidy allocation has come down from 16 percent of the total government expenditure to nine percent. This is a major improvement in the efficiency of public expenditure. “
Provided by government data
The subsidy allocation data shows that there has been a significant change after DBT implementation. In this, the scope of the beneficiary increased, but despite this, fiscal efficiency has improved. The subsidy was 16 percent of the total expenditure in the era before DBT (2009-2013). It was Rs 2.1 lakh crore annually and there was a lot of disturbance in the system. In the post-DBT round (2014-2024), the subsidy expenditure came to nine percent of the total expenditure in 2023-24, while the number of beneficiaries has increased 16 times.
According to the report, there was a savings of Rs 1.85 lakh crore under Food Subsidy (PDS). This is 53 percent of the total savings under DBT. The main reason for this is the verification of the ration card associated with Aadhaar. In MNREGA, 98 percent of wages were transferred on time. This saved Rs 42,534 crore through DBT-managed accountability.
Ineligible beneficiaries removed
Similarly, under the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi, the use of DBT has helped to save 2.1 crore ineligible beneficiaries from the scheme to save Rs 22,106 crore. Under fertilizer subsidy, sales of 158 lakh tonnes of fertilizer decreased, saving Rs 18,699.8 crore through targeted distribution.
The report said, “This savings suggests that DBT has managed to curb disturbances and theft. It has been successful in preventing disturbances in terms of schemes like food subsidy and MNREGA. The role of the system in biometric authentication and direct transfer has been important in improving efficiency and preventing misuse. “