EP2 : Sticker Shock

PM Modi's 'revdi-culture' remark has ignited the debate around freebie-centered electoral politics. Are they making India bankrupt? Or are they rightful necessities being passed on to citizens of a welfare state?

The maddening race for subsidies constraints government resources leading to increasing debts on states. Between 2018-19 and 2023-24, while the total GSDP of states increased by 60%, the subsidy bill of states went up by 124% in the same period. Do freebies kill state finances?