It is a well-accepted and established fact that policy makers are far removed from reality, more so in India. Policies are designed merely on demographic information and hence policies even with best of intentions also flop. It’s best example and remedy, both; were shared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in one of my meetings with him, when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. He said: “Government of Gujarat gives training machine to widows. When enquired, neither the IAS officers nor the ministers could answer how a women who has become a widow should go about to get the training. (This will be true for bureaucrats and ministers across the states) This got him thinking, if IAS officers, ministers don’t know then how will a widow know? When a woman has lost her husband she will be in a very miserable state of mind herself, she will have to pull herself up and look after kids and family responsibility. Government programmes being run for her benefit may not come in her mind almost upto a year of her widowhood?”

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