Page 44 - NIS English 1-15 June, 2026

Cover Story
Ease of Living
Years
of Vikas Yatra
A Revolutionary

Transformation

‘Ease of Living’—the facility of living one’s life with ease—is the right of every individual. The vision of the top
leadership of ‘New India’ implies a commitment not merely to a ‘privileged few,’ but to making life easier for the rural
population, the poor, tribal communities, and the middle class. Over the past 12 years, the Central Government has
not only envisioned the nation’s dreams on a grand scale but has also worked with great speed to ensure the ‘saturation’
(universal coverage) of programs designed to help people rise out of poverty into the middle class and to enhance public
amenities. Consequently, ‘Ease of Living’ is no longer just a phrase; it has become the government’s guiding mantra...

n Next-generation GST reforms
represent a decisive step toward
simplified taxation, reduced
burden on citizens, and improved
ease of doing business. 12.61
n Promoting Ease of Living, the Crore
government has significantly additional rural households were provided
boosted highway, railway, port, and with tap connections as of May 13, 2026. 58.18
high-speed air connectivity across Currently, 15.85 crore households have
the country including the Delhi- access to drinking water within their homes.
NCR region. Crore Jan Dhan
1.90 crore Digital Life Certificates were accounts were opened,
n In the ‘Ease of Living Index 2025,’ submitted from the comfort of home thereby enhancing the
Pune, Navi Mumbai, Greater between April 1, 2025, and March 31, ease of banking and
Mumbai, Tirupati, and Chandigarh 2026. Digital Life Certificates have made access to government
feature among the top 5 cities. subsidy benefits for the
life easier for senior citizens.
n The government implemented common citizen.
the new Income Tax Act, 2025,
No income tax
following a comprehensive regime on an annual ₹12
restructuring of the Income Tax under the new tax 9.19 Crore
Act, 1961. By simplifying and Lakhs. 3.3Crore
streamlining tax legislation, it income of up to
will become more accessible and
transparent. For salaried taxpayers, there is
a standard deduction of
n To ensure safe and convenient
2013-14 2024-25
travel for tourists, the toll- ₹75,000 — the number
free numbers 1800111363 of taxpayers
and 1363 have been launched filing ITRs.
as dedicated helplines. These
services are available 24 hours a Transactions ₹314 were processed via UPI in
day in 12 languages, including 10 exceeding 2025-26. This represents a
international languages. 12,000-fold increase over
Lakh Crore the past 10 years.
n To promote labor welfare and
simplify the lives of workers, Global Share: Over 700 banks have
four Labor Codes have been Indian UPI real- 49% joined the network.
implemented, replacing the time payments, as Today, approximately
previous laws. compared to the 540 million people are
world, stood at using UPI.

42 NEW INDIA SAMACHAR || June 1-15, 2026