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Wednesday, November 12, 2025
TopicFreebies

Topic: Freebies

Welfare or vote-bait? Unpacking the economics of India’s freebie culture

Freebie has become an integral part of our culture; it is like adulterating milk – just improving the quantity with quality remaining sluggish.

BJP govt in Delhi will have to deal with an impending revenue deficit. The promised freebies won’t help

Delhi has historically been in revenue surplus, but last 2 years have seen a deceleration. Subsidies & cash transfers may escalate the deficit, unless accompanied by a hike in revenues.

SubscriberWrites: India’s electoral democracy caught in cobweb of freebies & cash transfer

The focus on freebies and cash transfers has led to policy paralysis, as parties prioritize short-term electoral gains over long-term policy planning.

SubscriberWrites: Slogans, Promises and Freebies

The balance between aspirations and reality in modern India.

Middle class is addicted to Modi. Slowing growth, stalled reform & oppressive taxes don’t matter

Indian middle class seethes at growing phenomenon of political parties taking their tax money and spraying it among the more numerous poorer classes to buy their votes.

Indian political parties’ focus on women, cows & freebies, and Mukesh Ambani’s data centre ambitions

Global media also took note of the railway accident in Maharashtra, writing about safety of train travel in India, as well as the reality of the economic downturn in the country.

There’s a new ‘ism’ in town. Left, Right & Centre are losing to it

In the new world, the only idea that cuts across enough vote banks is populism. Its beauty, charm and success lies in its ease of use, in how little it demands from your head or heart.

Dashing through the snow, in a freebie-laden sleigh & packaged food for thought

The best cartoons of the day, chosen by the editors at ThePrint.

SubscriberWrites: Electoral optics and economy

Political parties must learn to differentiate between welfare schemes and freebies; while welfare schemes positively impact lives, non-merit freebies are not a fair practice.

On Camera

Air purifiers are the new water filters. Delhi has quietly accepted a crisis

The affluent in Delhi, armed with airtight windows, multiple purifiers, and humidifiers, have normalised a way of life that once seemed dystopian.

India’s factory data may get reality check in MoSPI’s new IIP plan, defunct factories to be dropped

MoSPI proposes to remove closed factories from IIP sample, aiming for truer picture of India’s industrial health in upcoming 2022–23 base series. Plan open to public feedback until 25 November.

‘Let them see’: Putin says new nuclear-powered missiles in the making, in message to Washington

At a ceremony felicitating Russian military engineers, Putin highlights Moscow’s 'parity' in defence technologies for the next century.

Bihar is where politics moves, and everything else stands still

Bihar is blessed with a land more fertile for revolutions than any in India. Why has it fallen so far behind then? Constant obsession with politics is at the root of its destruction.