If you are also middle class then know which new scheme the government is going to bring for you which will benefit you.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced a housing scheme for the middle class in her budget speech. Before this announcement, under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, low and moderate income people of the country were being given financial assistance in building or buying houses. Now the government has proposed a policy in the budget for the financial year 2025 to buy or build affordable houses for the middle class.
Under this scheme, middle class families living in rented houses, slums, chawls and illegal colonies will be provided financial assistance by the government to help them buy or build their own houses. This scheme run by the government will be under the ‘Housing for All’ policy. This scheme is not an extension of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). This is a new scheme, for which the government will help the beneficiaries of the scheme by identifying them and getting information about their earning level, location and type of house.
Who is middle class in India?
Now the question is, who come in the middle class? There is a lot of clarity regarding this in western countries. Very affluent families in the middle class come there. But there is no clear definition of it in India. Earning levels have been used to identify this group by conducting various surveys. According to the People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE) 2022 report, families earning Rs 5 lakh to Rs 30 lakh every year come under the middle class. An analysis based on 10-year-old data shows that many people who describe themselves as middle class may be among the top 1-5 percent of the country’s highest earning population. This clearly shows that in reality the income of middle class families is very low. The correct information about the data related to this will be known only after the data of consumer expenditure and census is available.
At the global level, scholars have tried to identify the middle class in different ways, but till now no universally accepted point has emerged. A report by Brookings states that the definition of middle class is based on falling into one of three broad categories of cash, which are related to earnings and their creditworthiness. They can also be identified through educational achievements, qualifications and culture. However, no universally accepted rule has yet been decided to define the middle class at the global level. There is confusion regarding this in India also.
How will this scheme help?
India’s rapidly growing middle class has attracted the world’s attention, but the question arises that very little is known about who the middle class actually is. Only after following the standards prepared by the government to identify the beneficiaries of this scheme, some information can be obtained as to who is the middle class? At present, there is no possibility of new consumer expenditure survey and census data coming soon. Beneficiaries can be selected for the scheme on the basis of earning level, place of residence and residence. On this basis, middle class can be defined by the government. It is possible that the government itself will release information about who will be able to take advantage of this scheme in the coming days.
