What is 'Social Security'?

Social security refers to a comprehensive system of public programs designed to protect individuals and families from economic and social distress caused by various life contingencies. These contingencies typically include old age, unemployment, sickness, disability, maternity, work injury, and the death of the breadwinner. The primary goal of social security is to ensure a minimum standard of living, reduce poverty, promote social equity, and provide a safety net for vulnerable populations. It typically involves contributions from employees, employers, and the government, and provides benefits in cash or kind, aiming to provide income security and access to essential services throughout an individual's life cycle.

Recent Social Security Measures Adopted by the Government in India:

The Government of India has adopted several significant social security measures in recent years, aiming to expand coverage and provide a more robust safety net, particularly for the unorganized sector and vulnerable groups. These measures often combine contributory and non-contributory schemes, leveraging technology for wider reach and efficient delivery:

1. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) (Launched 2014):

   • Measure: This scheme aims to provide universal access to banking facilities, including a basic savings bank account, remittance facilities, credit, insurance, and pension. While not a direct social security scheme, it serves as a crucial platform for delivering other social security benefits directly to beneficiaries.
   • Impact: Enabled direct benefit transfers (DBT) for various welfare schemes, improving financial inclusion, reducing leakages, and ensuring that benefits reach the intended recipients efficiently.

2. Atal Pension Yojana (APY) (Launched 2015):

   • Measure: APY is a pension scheme primarily for workers in the unorganized sector. It encourages individuals to save for retirement by providing a guaranteed minimum pension (ranging from Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 5,000 per month) based on their contributions, with the government also co-contributing for eligible subscribers.
   • Impact: Addresses the critical lack of formal pension coverage for millions of informal workers, promoting old-age income security and reducing poverty in later life.

3. Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) (Launched 2015):

   • Measure: This is an affordable life insurance scheme offering a renewable one-year term life cover of Rs. 2 lakh for a nominal annual premium. It is available to people aged 18-50 years with a bank account.
   • Impact: Provides affordable life insurance to low-income households, offering crucial financial protection to families in case of the policyholder's untimely demise.

4. Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) (Launched 2015):

   • Measure: PMSBY is an accident insurance scheme offering a renewable one-year accidental death and and total/partial disability cover of Rs. 2 lakh for a very low annual premium. It is available to people aged 18-70 years with a bank account.
   • Impact: Offers affordable accident insurance, providing a vital safety net against unforeseen events leading to death or disability, which can otherwise push vulnerable families into poverty.

5. Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) (Launched 2018):

   • Measure: This is the world's largest government-funded health assurance scheme. It provides a health cover of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to over 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries).
   • Impact: Significantly reduces out-of-pocket health expenditures for the poorest sections of society, protecting them from catastrophic health costs and improving access to quality healthcare, thereby preventing health-related poverty.

6. Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan (PM-SYM) (Launched 2019):

   • Measure: This is a voluntary and contributory pension scheme specifically for unorganized workers (e.g., street vendors, rickshaw pullers, construction workers, domestic workers) with a monthly income of Rs. 15,000 or less. It provides an assured minimum monthly pension of Rs. 3,000 after attaining the age of 60 years, with the government making an equal matching contribution.
   • Impact: Directly targets the vast unorganized sector, providing a much-needed old-age income security mechanism for a segment of the workforce previously largely excluded from formal pension schemes.

7. E-Shram Portal (Launched 2021):

   • Measure: This national database of unorganized workers aims to register and provide a Universal Account Number (UAN) to informal workers. This registration helps the government identify and extend social security benefits and welfare schemes to these workers, who were previously difficult to track and cover.
   • Impact: Formalizes the identification of informal workers, making it easier to deliver targeted social security and welfare programs, ensuring that benefits reach the intended beneficiaries more effectively.

These measures collectively represent a significant push by the Indian government to expand the scope and reach of social security, moving towards a more inclusive welfare state and providing a safety net for a larger proportion of its population, particularly those in the vulnerable and unorganized sectors.