New Delhi, March 25 -- India's social protection coverage increased from 24.4% in 2021 to 48.8% in 2024, according to the ILO's World Social Protection Report (WSPR) 2024-26.

This increase acknowledges existing central social protection schemes that had not been considered earlier.

India has made significant strides in enhancing its social protection coverage through a comprehensive data-pooling exercise led by the Ministry in collaboration with ILO.

By utilising encrypted Aadhaar as a unique identifier across 34 major central schemes, such as MGNREGA, EPFO, ESIC, APY, and PM-POSHAN, over 200 crore records were processed to identify unique beneficiaries.

According to the release, this exercise revealed that 65% of India's population (...