How the Modi Government Has Opened New Avenues of Upward Mobility for Indians

"An op-ed by Harsh Singh Dahiya on how the Modi government has created new pathways of upward mobility for Indians by prioritising dignity, opportunity, and empowerment. The piece highlights reforms in financial inclusion, housing, healthcare, skills, and entrepreneurship that have enabled millions to rise from dependency to self-reliance and economic progress."

Upward mobility is the ability of an individual or a family to move ahead in life through better income, improved living conditions, stronger social security, and wider opportunities. It is about breaking free from generational stagnation and gaining the means to shape one’s own future with dignity. True upward mobility is achieved when effort is rewarded, aspirations are realistic, and the system enables growth rather than dependency.

For India, upward mobility is the real test of nation-building. A young country with deep social diversity cannot progress if large sections of its population remain trapped at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Sustainable growth requires citizens who can earn more, live better, educate their children, and participate confidently in the economy. When upward mobility expands, poverty reduces permanently, inequality narrows organically, and social harmony strengthens.

This is precisely the lens through which Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approached governance. From the very start, his emphasis has been on replacing a culture of entitlement with a culture of empowerment. Modi ji has consistently argued that the role of the state is not to keep citizens dependent on doles, but to give them the tools to stand on their own feet. His policies reflect a clear sequence: dignity first, security next, and opportunity thereafter.

The damage caused by years of drift under the Indian National Congress cannot be ignored in this context. Policy paralysis, corruption scandals, and indecisive leadership choked economic momentum and eroded public trust. Welfare schemes were reduced to slogans, with benefits leaking through middlemen and little effort made to create long-term capability. Instead of opening doors, governance often became a roadblock, freezing ambition and discouraging enterprise.

The Modi government decisively altered this trajectory. It recognised that no citizen can aspire or grow while living without basic dignity. That is why the first wave of reforms focused on fundamentals: housing, sanitation, electricity, cooking fuel, healthcare, and bank accounts. A family that has a pucca house, a toilet, clean cooking fuel, electricity, and health security is no longer living in constant vulnerability. Such a household can plan, save, invest in education, and take economic risks. Dignity, in this sense, became the foundation of mobility.

Simultaneously, the government expanded avenues of earning. Financial inclusion connected the poor to formal banking. Credit schemes unlocked entrepreneurship. Skill programmes raised employability. Income support stabilised rural households. These were not isolated initiatives, but parts of a larger architecture designed to move Indians from survival to stability, and from stability to prosperity. The visible outcome has been a higher standard of living, wider participation in the formal economy, and a renewed confidence among citizens that growth is within reach.

The scale of this transformation is unprecedented. Crores of Indians have entered the formal banking system, enabling savings, insurance, and access to credit. Crores of toilets have improved public health and productivity. Over ten crore clean cooking connections have freed women from hazardous conditions and time poverty. Lakhs of homes have created durable assets for families that never owned property before. Health insurance coverage has shielded vulnerable households from catastrophic medical expenses. Tens of crores of Mudra loans have empowered small entrepreneurs, while skill programmes and the startup ecosystem have opened pathways to better jobs and enterprise. These are not abstract numbers; they represent millions of individual journeys upward, powered by policy rather than patronage.

Key Schemes Enabling Upward Mobility

• Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana

  Integrated the poor into the formal financial system, enabling savings, credit, and direct benefit transfers.

  
  

• Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana

  Enabled micro and small entrepreneurs to start and expand businesses through collateral-free loans.

  
  

• Startup India

  Created a supportive ecosystem for innovation, encouraging youth to become job creators.

  
  

• Stand-Up India

  Expanded institutional credit access for SC, ST, and women entrepreneurs.

  
  

• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana and Skill India Mission

  Improved employability and wage potential through market-relevant skills.

  
  

• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

  Provided asset ownership and housing security, strengthening financial and social stability.

  
  

• Swachh Bharat Mission

  Improved health, dignity, and productivity through universal sanitation.

  
  

• Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

  Reduced health risks and empowered women by providing clean cooking fuel.

  
  

• Saubhagya Yojana

  Ensured household electrification, enabling education, enterprise, and productivity.

  
  

• Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY

  Protected families from medical poverty traps through health insurance.

  
  

• PM-KISAN

  Stabilised farm incomes, enabling investment and reducing rural distress.

  
  

• MGNREGA

  Provided a safety net during economic distress, preventing downward mobility.

Narendra Modi ji’s legacy will be defined by this fundamental shift in governance philosophy. He has reimagined welfare as a ladder, not a crutch. By restoring dignity, expanding opportunity, and unleashing aspiration, he has given millions of Indians the confidence to dream bigger and aim higher. In doing so, he has emerged as a transformational reformer and a true Yug Purush, steering India decisively from a developing mindset toward the reality of a developed nation.

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About the Author

Harsh Singh Dahiya is an Advocate at the Supreme Court of India and an award-winning former entrepreneur. With a distinguished background in law, business, and public policy, he has worked towards the empowerment of citizens, farmers, and youth while contributing meaningfully to policymaking and governance. A regular face on national television debates, he offers a sharp and reasoned India First perspective on law, politics, and public affairs.