71% Villagers Say There's High Corruption In Government Welfare Schemes

Survey in four randomly selected districts shows over half of them are not satisfied with government schemes.

Updated on: 7 February 2024 6:02 pm

RURAL INDIA POLL
71% Villagers Say There’s High Corruption In Government Welfare Schemes

Outlook asked Cfore to survey government schemes and partnerships in four randomly selected districts— Tonk (Rajasthan), Jhansi (Uttar Pradesh), Rangareddy (Andhra Pradesh), and Saran (Bihar). In all, 1,013 villagers were surveyed. Not surprisingly, over half of them are not satisfied with governmentschemes.

	Jhansi	Ranga reddy	Saran	Tonk	Over All
Do you have easy access/knowledge about government’s welfare schemes?

Yes	38	55	35	48	44%
No	62	45	65	52	56%

Are you a beneficiary of government schemes?
Yes	58	63	51	74	61%
No	42	37	49	26	39%

If yes, how satisfied are you with government schemes?
Very Satisfied	6	15	9	11	10%
Somewhat Satisfied	27	45	37	41	38%
Dissatisfied	47	30	23	32	33%
Very Dissatisfied	20	10	31	16	19%

Have you ever paid a bribe to get the benefits from a welfare scheme?
Yes	32	21	30	37	30%
No	68	79	70	63	70%

Is there corruption in government welfare schemes?
High Corruption	81	68	71	63	71%
Little Corruption	17	25	28	34	25%
No Corruption	2	7	1	3	4%

Is there a community/private welfare activity in your area?
Yes	17	29	23	36	26%
No	25	37	32	26	30%
Don't know	58	34	45	38	44%

If yes, who is delivering better results?
Community/ private	49	42	36	37	41%
Government	21	23	26	22	23%
Joint efforts*	23	31	29	28	28%
No opinion	7	4	9	13	8%
* Collaboration between government and NGOs

Does community/private participation in welfare schemes bring more accountability?
Yes	42	78	48	57	56%
No	23	18	10	29	20%
Can't say	35	4	42	14	24%

Are you willing to pay for community/private schemes or should the government provide these services?
Yes	57	51	61	63	58%
Prefer subsidised/ free services	43	49	39	37	42%

Are you satisfied with the development in your area in the past 12 months?
Yes, very much	4	21	14	18	15%
Yes, somewhat	47	51	55	45	49%
Not at all	49	28	31	37	20%

Methodology: The survey was conducted between February 20 and March 5, ’08. In all, 10 villages were selected in each district, five within 10 km of a city/town, and five beyond 10 km. Households were randomly selected. In addition, there's a booster sample of 30-50 respondents who have been beneficiaries of at least one government scheme. In all, 1,013 villagers in the four districts were interviewed using a structured questionnaire.