Cap giveaways

Entitlements without considering future costs not advisable

The ongoing election campaign has featured a noticeable amount of competitive populism. The Bharatiya Janata Party has promised income transfers to small and marginal farmers. The opposition Congress party, meanwhile, has promised a minimum income guarantee, which would transfer cash to all those below an unspecified poverty line. The past year has seen various state governments promise loan waivers and deliver them to a lesser or greater degree. But that is no longer the primary issue. The issue now is one of spreading entitlements, particularly to programmes that are open-ended in scope. The question that needs to be asked is