The recent policy announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding a ₹10,000 cash transfer to women's accounts in Bihar has sparked a nuanced debate on gender budgeting and the efficacy of such initiatives. Against the backdrop of fiscal rules and the discretionary fiscal space available for the State, it is essential to analyse the policy implications. Gender budgeting is not synonymous to designing unconditional fiscal transfers to women, rather it is applying an effective ‘gender lens’ in the overall fiscal policies towards women-led development.

Economic empowerment or electoral politics?

On the surface, direct cash transfers to women's accounts in the care economy can be seen as a step towards empowering women financially, promoting gender equality, and recognizing their contr

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