Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters
Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters
Tom Holland
Opinion

Opinion

Abacus by Tom Holland

Rahul Gandhi’s plans to end Indian poverty work economically, just not politically

  • The Congress leader wants to introduce a ‘quasi-universal basic rural income’
  • The figures add up, but a very vocal minority stands to lose

Tom Holland
Tom Holland

Updated: 9:00am, 11 Feb, 2019

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Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters
Rahul Gandhi, president of India's main opposition Congress party, has promised nothing less than to end hunger and poverty by introducing a government-funded universal basic income for the country’s rural poor. Photo: Reuters
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Tom Holland

Tom Holland

Tom Holland is a former SCMP staffer who has been writing about Asian affairs for more than 25 years