India, Oct. 14 -- By Anil Chaudhary, National President, Jat Mahasabha

Antyodaya does not merely mean that government assistance reaches the last person. The real test is whether it reaches them with dignity. For years, elderly women in villages kept making rounds of government offices for their pensions, farmers stood before clerks to claim their rightful dues, and poor people had to seek someone's recommendation at every stage. Even when assistance arrived, it came in the form of a favour. DBT has changed this very picture in Uttar Pradesh. Now, money transferred from Lucknow or Delhi goes directly into the beneficiary's account, with no middleman and no deductions in between. Instead of having to hold out their hands in supplication, ...