India has recorded a phenomenal expansion of social security coverage from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025. This means that 64.3% of India’s population, i.e. 94.3 crore people, are now covered under at least one social protection benefit. 

This unprecedented increase has also been acknowledged by International Labour Organization’s (ILO) on its ILOSTAT database.

This 45-percentage point jump over ten years marks one of the most significant expansions globally. In terms of number of beneficiaries, India now ranks second in the world after China,in providing social protection to citizens.

Understanding Social Security

As per ILO, social security is the protection that a society provides to individuals and families to ensure access to health care and to guarantee income security. It is especially important in times of old age, sickness,  unemployment, disability, maternity, work injury or the loss of a breadwinner. Defined in ILO conventions and UN instruments, social security is recognised as a basic human right. India has a wide-ranging social security system comprising of social insurance and social assistance schemes both at central and state levels. These include welfare payments, mandatory social insurance with contributions from employer and employee, and other employer-based benefits. In addition to these, there are also schemes providing in kind benefits like food, health, shelter security etc.

The Ministry of Labour and Employment is working closely with ILO for a national social protection data pooling exercise to obtain a holistic picture of social protection coverage inIndia. Under this project encrypted Aadhaar is being used as a unique identifier across 34 major Central schemes such as MGNREGA, EPFO, ESIC, APY, and PM-POSHAN, to identify unique beneficiaries. Phase I of this pooling exercise started on 19th March 2025 and includes ten states i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha,Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Gujarat. This data pooling exercise will not only strengthen India’s global reputation as a social protection pioneer but also facilitate the Central Government, States and UTs to optimize welfare spending and move closer towards sustainable financing of social protection. It will help the States in identifying unique beneficiaries under state-specific social protection schemes.

When assessing the social security coverage of countries, ILO considers only those schemes that are legislatively backed, in cash, and are active, and for which verified time series data of last three years has been provided. The present figure reflects only Phase I of the data pooling exercise. This phase focused on beneficiary data of Central sector schemes and women-centricschemes in selected 8 States.

With Phase II and further consolidation underway, it is expected that India’s total social protection coverage will soon surpass the 100-crore mark upon verification of additional schemes by the ILO. Further, while ILO’s database takes into account only the cash-based schemes, there are millions more who are receiving non-cash coverage through various food and health security schemes.

India is also the first country to update its 2025 social protection data in the ILOSTAT database.

This highlights its leadership in digital governance and commitment to building a transparent and inclusive welfare system.

The increase in Social Protection Coverage will strengthen India’s global engagements,particularly in finalising Social Security Agreements (SSAs) with developed nations. These agreements will ensure the portability of social protection benefits for Indian professionals working overseas, while offering partner countries the transparency required for mutual recognition frameworks. This will further bolster India's position in trade and labour mobility

negotiations by showcasing a credible and robust social protection regime.

Creating an Enabling Environment for the Expansion

This massive expansion in social security coverage can be seen as a result of the pro-poor and labour welfare schemes undertaken by the Modi Government over the past 11 years, and itsfocus on creating an inclusive and rights-based social protection ecosystem. The Government has taken several steps to create an environment that enabled such an expansion:

Simplifying Legislations

India has more than 50 crore workers, with almost 90 percent in the unorganized sector. The

social security ecosystem in the country was riddled with legislations, and there was no social security available to the workers in the unorganized sector. To address these issues, thepresent government took the initiative to simplify laws and bring the unorganized sector under the ambit of social security protection.

Twenty-nine labour laws have now been codified into 4 Labour Codes –

1. The Wage Code with amalgamation of 4 laws for ensuring workers’ right to minimum2. 3. wagesSocial Security Code, 2020 with amalgamation of 9 laws to ensure social security protection for all workers including those of unorganized sector.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code with amalgamation of 13 laws(of 2020) to provide right of security to workers in all situation.

 

4. Industrial Relations Code with amalgamation of 3 labor laws for safeguardinginterests of Trade unions as well as workers.

Social Security Code, 2020; New Labour Code for New India

To ensure security for all workers, the Central Government has amalgamated 9 Labour Laws

into the Social Security Code in order to secure the right of workers for insurance, pension, gratuity, maternity benefit etc. The code calls for creation of a comprehensive legal framework for Social Security. Under this, a system would be institutionalized for the contributions received from employer and worker. The Government can fund the contribution of workers from disadvantaged section.

The Code provides for the following benefits to all workers:

• Through a small contribution, benefit of free treatment to be available under hospitals

and dispensaries of ESIC.

• ESIC will now be open for the workers of all sectors, along with the workers of the

unorganized sector.

• Expansion of ESIC hospitals, dispensaries and branches up to district level. This facility

to be increased from 566 districts to all the 740 districts of the country.

• Even if a single worker is engaged in hazardous work, he would be given ESIC benefit.

• Opportunity to join ESIC platform and gig workers engaged in new technology.

• Plantation workers to get benefit of ESIC.

• Institutions working in hazardous area to be compulsorily registered with ESIC.

• Benefit of pension scheme (EPFO) to all workers of organized, unorganized and self-

employed sectors.

• Creation of social security fund for providing comprehensive social security to the

unorganized sector.

• Requirement of minimum service has been removed for payment of gratuity in case of

fixed term employees.

• Employees engaged on fixed term to get same social security benefit as permanent employees.

• Creating a national database of workers of unorganized sector through registration on

Portal.

• Employers employing more than 20 workers to mandatorily report vacancies online.

• A Universal Account Number (UAN) for ESIC, EPFO and Unorganised Sector workers.

• Aadhaar based Universal Account Number (UAN) to ensure seamless portability.

Building Digital and Financial Foundations

• Jan Dhan Yojana: Financial inclusion has been at the heart of India’s social security

push. As of June 18, 2025 over 55.64 crore people hold Jan Dhan accounts, giving them

direct access to government benefits and formal banking services.2

• Aadhaar and Digital Identity: The Aadhaar programme has helped create a unique

digital identity system. As of June 27, 2025, over 142 crore Aadhaar cards have been

issued.3 This system supports authentication and delivery of benefits to the right

person at the right time.

• Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT): The DBT system has streamlined welfare payments,

reducing leakages and delays. Cumulative savings have reached ₹3.48 lakh crore as of

March 2023, reflecting its efficiency and scale.4

• Digital Connectivity and 5G Infrastructure: By 2025, 5G services have reached 99.6

percent of the country’s districts. With nearly three lakh base stations added in 2023–

24 alone, digital services have become faster and more accessible. The fall in data costs

from ₹308 per GB in 2014 to ₹9.34 in 2022 has made digital inclusion affordable for the masses.

5 Key Government Social Security Programmes Insurance and Pension Schemes

• Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY): This scheme offers affordable

accident insurance and has played a key role in extending basic security to low-income

individuals. As of May 2025, it has enrolled 51.06 crore people across the country.

• Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY): A renewable one-year life

insurance scheme that offers coverage of ₹2 lakh at a low premium of ₹436 per year.

As of May 2025, the scheme covers 23.64 crore individuals.

 

By Santosh Kumar/ Abhishek KS/ Saurabh Kalia