The concept of social welfare has been best described by the US social welfare expert, Walter Friendander as ”an organised system of social services and institutions designed to aid individuals and groups in attaining basic human requirements such as food, shelter, health, and education.” The main aim of social welfare is to help provide specific services to underprivileged and underserved sections of society like insurance against unemployment, poverty, disability, or old age.
Social welfare and economic growth go hand-in-hand. The socio-economic development of a country is always dependent on the socio-economic development of every individual in the society. This is why social welfare is of crucial importance to the budget and the society as a whole.
Here, we will take a look at the expectations for social welfare and economic growth that the society and the stakeholders have when it comes to the Union Budget 2025.
Introduction
Why Social Welfare and Economic Growth is a Key Focus Area?
Social welfare is a crucial aspect in India as it is a stepping stone towards helping establish and maintain social justice, reducing inequality, and empowering vulnerable populations. Economic growth of a country, on the other hand, helps support these social welfare initiatives, thus helping the population contribute effectively towards the growth of the country’s economy.
With the right policies and budget allocations to support the growth of both social welfare and economic growth, the country can undoubtedly achieve potential greater economic development and promote inclusivity whilst doing so.
Role of Union Budget in Shaping Social Welfare and Economic Growth
The very first Indian budget included provisions for certain social welfare programs that were aimed at bettering the living standard of the individuals in the society, particularly for the underprivileged and underserved populations.
The Union Budget 2024-2025 also brought to the fore quite a few provisions to help with the social welfare and economic growth of the society. The budget focussed on improving employment opportunities by reimbursing EPFO for new hires and setting up working women hostels. The budget also looked into providing apt nutrition to women and children under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), the Mid-Day Meal scheme (MDM) and the Poshan 2.0 and Saksham Anganwadi. The budget also saw provisions being made for housing facilities, tribal communities, education and health.
Key Expectations for Social Welfare and Economic Growth
Expected Budget Allocations
With social welfare and economic growth forming an important part of society, stakeholders have a lot of expectations from the government in terms of the budget allocations for the sector. One such expectation is the continued focus on infrastructure development. Allocations focussed on infrastructure in addition to skilling, providing financial assistance and welfare measures for women, farmers, youth and the poor can go a long way in helping the social and economic growth of the country.
The expectation of the policymakers focussing on enhancing the CAPEX is also one that needs to be stated. This enhancement is to help focus more on areas like social welfare initiatives, roads and improving the water supply systems.
Another expectation is that the allocations could potentially be focussed on expanding support to women through various programs. These include programs like Mission Shakti, Janani Suraksha Yojana and Matru Vandana Yojana.
Schemes introduced in the Budget 2024 relating to agriculture and rural development are also expected to get a boost in this budget. Some of these schemes include the PM-Kisan, Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and the Mudra Yojana.
Policy Updates Likely to Impact Social Welfare and Economic Growth
Taking into account the possible provisions that might come into play during the Union Budget 2025, certain policy recommendations or policy updates need to be carried out. To boost skilling and job creation, incentives that help promote labour-intensive sectors need to be targeted. Providing financial support to both employees and employers can help facilitate the implementation of skill development practices. The creation of a central database that lists the skills the market requires and the available talent will help match the two and address skill gaps.
Policy updates that help deal with inflation will be another priority. This can be done with the introduction of long-term initiatives focussed on value-chain creation which can lead to a considerable decrease in losses faced by farmers post-harvest and address issues that crop up with sudden rise in food prices. Policy updates focus on the creation of cold storage facilities, the establishment of digital marketplaces, and the smooth functioning of programs like PDS or Public Distribution systems can also go a long way.
Additional Read: Union Budget 2025: What to Expect for Real Estate
Trends from Previous Budgets and Their Influence on 2025
There are quite a few trends that might influence the 2025 budget this time around. When it came to employment opportunities, the budget 2024-25 focussed on providing one-month wages to new entrants in formal sectors, setting up creches and working women hostels. The budget also included the reimbursement of employer EPFO contributions for new hires.
The previous budget also focussed on improving the nutritional health of both women and children through programs like the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDM), the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) and the Poshan 2.0 and Saksham Anganwadi.
Other trends that the previous budget focussed on also include the provisions to construct additional houses in both urban and rural areas under the PM Awas Yojana and the welfare of the tribal communities through the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan.
The education and health sector also saw a boost in the previous budget where plans to skill 20 lakh youth in the next five-year period were implemented and the focus on improving healthcare facilities was also established.
Additional Read: Union Budget 2025: What to Expect for Healthcare Sector
Challenges to Address in Budget 2025
Existing Issues in Social Welfare and Economic Growth
There is no doubt that Indian society has grown and developed over time both socially and economically. However, this does not mean that more provisions are not needed to address certain challenges.
Challenges like income inequality, where wealth is concentrated in the hands of few, add to the widening income gap between the rich and the poor. Social inequality still exists, despite the numerous social welfare schemes. The underserved and poor sections of society are still unable to access basic facilities like healthcare, education, etc.
Even with the economic growth, joblessness is still a prevalent issue in the society. Capital-intensive sectors are a major focus to help the country achieve economic growth. However, despite this, the failure to generate employment opportunities, especially for low-skilled workers is another challenge.
Disparities between the development of rural and urban spaces are still prevalent and also need to be addressed.
Industry Expectations to Overcome Hurdles
If precious trends are anything to go by, and if they are indeed going to influence the Union Budget 2025, then these issues and challenges can be addressed efficiently. When the government chooses to favour labour over capital, issues like income inequality can be addressed.
Better education, employment and income opportunities being provided to marginalized communities like Dalits, Adivasis and women can help address caste and gender disparities. Improving funding for public schools in underserved areas can also help education become more accessible and affordable thus bridging the educational inequality gap, one school at a time.
Increasing employment in the formal sector can help deal with the jobless growth the country is going through now. Since a majority of labour is involved in the informal sector, the employment disparity exists to a great extent.
Additional Read: Union Budget 2025: What to Expect for India’s Labour Market
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