Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday, June 8, 2026, praised the 12-year welfare record of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, asserting that poverty-alleviation efforts have produced visible, ground-level results across India. Rijiju's post, tagged #12YearsOfGaribKalyan, cited the delivery of housing, cooking gas, banking access, healthcare, sanitation, food, and piped water to crores of poor families.

Context

Rijiju wrote in Hindi: 'अब केवल बातें नहीं होतीं, काम भी होता है' ('Now it is not just talk — work gets done too'). He credited PM Modi's leadership over the past 12 years with making poverty-reduction efforts 'clearly visible at the grassroots level.' The post was accompanied by a video and carries the hashtag #12YearsOfGaribKalyan, marking what the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is framing as a governance anniversary milestone.

Rijiju specifically highlighted freedom from corruption and middlemen as an enabling condition, arguing that direct delivery has ensured that benefits reach intended beneficiaries without leakage. The messaging reflects the government's broader emphasis on Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) architecture, which was scaled up after 2014 using Aadhaar-seeded accounts.

Policy Backdrop

The schemes referenced in the post span more than a decade of central government programming. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, launched in 2015, targets pucca house construction for rural and urban poor households. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, started in 2016, extended LPG connections to below-poverty-line families to replace traditional cooking fuels.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, launched in August 2014, opened zero-balance bank accounts to enable direct transfers. Swachh Bharat Mission, begun in October 2014, drove household toilet construction to achieve open-defecation-free status. Jal Jeevan Mission, launched in 2019, aims to provide functional tap water connections to rural households. Ayushman Bharat, rolled out in 2018, provides health insurance coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per family for secondary and tertiary care. PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, first announced in 2020, has provided free foodgrain to eligible households and been extended in subsequent years.

Together, these programmes form what the government describes as a saturation-model approach — combining infrastructure creation with consumption support under a unified poverty-alleviation framework.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries cited are crores of poor and rural households across India. The DBT-enabled delivery model, underpinned by Aadhaar linkages, was designed to reduce intermediary leakages that historically diverted subsidies before they reached intended recipients. Rijiju described these programmes not merely as schemes but as 'a strong foundation for the dignity, empowerment, and better future of crores of poor families.'

Opposition parties have previously contested the scale and quality of on-ground delivery, pointing to gaps in implementation and exclusions in beneficiary lists. The government has maintained that independent surveys and administrative data show substantial improvements in multidimensional poverty indicators since 2014.

What's Next

The #12YearsOfGaribKalyan campaign signals that welfare delivery will remain a central plank of the BJP's political messaging in the months ahead. Analysts will watch for any fresh announcements on scheme extensions — particularly PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana — in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament or the next Union Budget. Official data from statistical agencies on multidimensional poverty reduction will be closely scrutinised as the government seeks to validate the narrative of transformative welfare delivery over 12 years.