Why people of Uttar Pradesh gave another term to Yogi Adityanath-led BJP Government

March 11, 2022, New Delhi: Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh has been voted to power once again after winning over 265 seats in the 2022 legislative assembly election. He completed 5 years of his term as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh ahead of the state election, which was held from Feb 10 to Mar 7, 2022. In the last 5 years, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh Government made some bold moves, some of which have also been criticised by other political parties.

While some political experts anticipated Akhilesh Yadav of the Samjawadi Party to give strong competition to Yogi Adityanath-led BJP, and despite it increasing over 80 seats as compared to last election, it could only hit the 130-seat mark. BJP winning the assembly election for two consecutive terms in Uttar Pradesh is historic as typically the state has been voted out of the government in power after the first term, replacing it with the primary opposition party. LocalCircles over the last 90 days has been conducting an extensive evaluation of the 5 years of the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh Government. This exercise enables both the broader citizenry and Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh Government to understand where things stand and what needs to be worked upon in the next five years.

Through a series of graphics and charts, this report outlines how residents of Uttar Pradesh rated the 5-year performance of the Yogi Government. Over 70,000 responses were received from residents in 51 districts of Uttar Pradesh. 70% of the participants were men while 30% were women. Of the total participants, 36% were located in tier 1 districts, 28% were from tier 2 districts and 36% were from tier 3, 4 districts and rural districts.

80% citizens of Uttar Pradesh say cleanliness level in their district has improved in the last 5 years

Over the years, the Uttar Pradesh Government has implemented various cleanliness drives across the state. In October 2019, for example, the state Government launched an extensive cleanliness drive with a special focus on single-use plastic goods covering all 75 districts. It put up several hoardings spreading awareness to contribute to making cities clean. Last year, before the pandemic hit the country, UP had implemented a 5-point charter to all local bodies, district program managers and coordinators to ensure cleanliness in their area, like garbage-free, open defecation free, improving ratings, along with solid and liquid waste management. The State Government had said the officers tasked with cleanliness exercises would be held accountable if the state doesn't perform well in the cleanliness drive.

The first question in the survey tried to better understand from the residents of Uttar Pradesh how they rate the improvement in cleanliness in their district in the last 5 years. In response, the majority of 56% of citizens said there has been “significant improvement”, and 24% said “some improvement” in cleanliness levels in their districts in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance. Only 10% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, 4% said it has “gotten worse”, and 6% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 80% of UP residents say that cleanliness level in the district has improved in the last 5 years, while 20% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,895 responses.

65% citizens of Uttar Pradesh say there has been reduction in corruption in the last 5 years

Uttar Pradesh is no indifferent to corruption that is taking place across the country at various levels. Even ministers have been slammed by the opposition for corruption worth thousands of crore rupees in the implementation of schemes such as the Jal Jeevan Mission, to cite an example. To a certain extent, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s zero-tolerance policy on corruption has been able to curb the menace against corrupt officers in the state. The UP Government has taken action against several corrupt officials, including engineers, IAS, and IPS officers. The State Government has operationalised the GeM portal to effectively establish a corruption-free environment, mandating all purchases by its departments through the portal. It maintains that through the GEM portal, it has managed to curb corruption worth thousands of crores. The UP Government also claims that via demolition/seizure of illegal property of the mafia, worth over INR 1,866 crore has been seized.

The following question sought UP residents’ observation if corruption in the state has reduced in the last 5 years. In response, 39% said there has been “significant reduction”, and 26% said “minor reduction” in corruption in UP in the last 5 years. Breaking down the poll, 20% of residents said there has been “no reduction” in corruption. 1% said there has been “minor increase”, and 12% said it has “significantly increased” while 2% did not have an opinion. On an aggregate basis, 65% of UP residents say there has been reduction in corruption in Uttar Pradesh in the last 5 years, while 33% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,913 responses.

78% citizens say Law & Order in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

The Uttar Pradesh Government has been time and again criticised for the blatant violation of rule of law in the state. Recently, a civil society group comprising academics, intellectuals and former bureaucrats had to write an open letter to highlight the blatant violation of the law on the various ground such as police attacks on peaceful protests, minorities, etc. Even the opposition has been hitting hard on the Yogi Adityanath-led UP Government over an alleged deterioration of the law & order situation in the state, stating that criminal activities are rampant in the state. Earlier, the state's party spokesperson had assured to control rage-driven crimes, and ensured that police are working relentlessly towards putting criminals behind bars. The UP Government claims that as many as 150 criminals have been killed in encounters while National Security Act had been slapped on 630 people and 44,759 have been booked under the Goonda Act. Overall, a lot of citizens in the LocalCircles communities have been expressing improvement in the law & order situation in recent times and expressing the need to continue on this path.

The next question tried to understand UP residents’ pulse on how they rate the Law & Order situation in their district in the last 5 years. Notably, the majority, 56% of UP residents say there has been a “significant improvement” of law & order in their state in the last 5 years, while 22% say there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 7% of UP resident say there has been “no improvement”, 6% say it has “gotten worse”, and 9% say it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 78% of UP residents say Law & Order in their state has improved in the last 5 years, while 22% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,897 responses.

76% citizens in Uttar Pradesh now believe Doing Business in Uttar Pradesh has become easier in the last 5 years

In the past few years, the State Government has taken many policy decisions to attract investment in the state and boost GDP. Uttar Pradesh, with State Gross Domestic Product (SGDP) of INR 17,05,593 crore, is the 2nd largest economy in the country. According to a July report published by the Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Uttar Pradesh ranks 2nd on the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) among states. Reports, citing economist and former chief secretary, estimate that the total investment during the last 4 years of Yogi Governments is more than INR 88,000 crore, and has attracted around INR 32,000 crore across sectors such as electric manufacturing and renewable energy, IT, among others. Another media report, citing data of the MSME department, the state has started 8.67 lakh new units in the state in the past 12 months. The State Government claims that many businesses have prospered under their leadership. For a small business, ease of doing business translates into faster permissions, corruption-free environment, increased use of technology and above all government officials treating business owners with respect and are willing to address their concerns.

The question in the survey asked its residents to rate the performance of the state in Ease of Doing Business in UP in the last 5 years. In response, the majority of 51% of UP residents said there has been a “significant improvement” in Ease of Doing Business in the state in the last 5 years, while 25% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 13% of UP residents said there has been “no improvement”, 4% said it has “gotten worse”, and 5% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 76% of Uttar Pradesh residents believe that Doing Business in the state has become easier in the last 5 years under Yogi Governance, while 22% say it has not. This question in the survey received 5,511 responses.

72% citizens feel healthcare services in their district in Uttar Pradesh have improved in the last 5 years

The 2nd wave of the COVID-19 outbreak tested the pulse of the Uttar Pradesh Government in their preparedness and effectiveness to handle the outbreak vis-à-vis governance. The state, with its high population and poor health infrastructure, got severely impacted by the outbreak as many people in rural areas lost their lives due to the infection. Images of dead bodies on the shores of River Ganga made headlines across media from around the world. The state that was witnessing less than 100 COVID cases in early March 2021 saw it rise drastically to over 34,000 cases by late April of the same year. However, it is noteworthy that despite the gap between demand and supply for healthcare at the peak of the COVID 2nd wave, Uttar Pradesh was able to reduce 95% of active cases by the end of June 2021, crediting the Test-Trace-Treat (T3) model. It has also encouraged doorstep delivery of essentials to the citizens in the containment zones during the period. While a lot more is desired in the area of healthcare, especially as future COVID waves arrive, people felt that the services were an improvement as compared to what was there before 2017.

The following question in the survey tried to understand from residents the overall healthcare situation in their district in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance in terms of availability, affordability, and quality. In response, the majority of 53% of UP residents have rated that there has been a “significant improvement” regarding the healthcare in their district in the last 5 years under the Yogi Governance, while 19% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 9% of UP residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 9% said it has “gotten worse”, and 8% said say it has gotten “significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 72% of Uttar Pradesh residents feel that healthcare services in their district have improved in the last 5 years, while 26% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,688 responses.

65% citizens feel communal harmony in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

The Yogi Adityanath-led BJP Government claimed to have “bought peace, improved law and order for all,” sending out the larger message for “Sabka saath, sabka vikas” (With everyone, for everyone’s progress) to the state. However, there have been many cases along the lines of communal disharmony in Uttar Pradesh over the past few years. To cite an example, a video of a Muslim e-rickshaw driver assaulted and forcibly made to chant “Jai Shri Ram” by a group of men in the state’s Bara Kanpur was widely shared across social media. Media reports are also rife with such cases registered across the state. However, large-scale rioting of any kind did not take place in the 5 years under this Government’s leadership.

The question in the survey tried to better understand from UP’s residents about how they rate improvement in communal harmony in their state in the last 5 years. In response, the majority of 43% of UP residents surveyed said the situation regarding communal harmony in the state has “significantly improved”, while 22% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 7% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 7% said it has “gotten worse”, and 18% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 65% of UP residents feel that communal harmony in the state has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 33% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,742 responses.

76% citizens say power supply in their district in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

Power cuts have historically been one of the top issues for residents of Uttar Pradesh. The number of unelectrified households stood at 2,53,785 till August-end in 2020. The Yogi Government claims that concrete steps are being taken in streamlining power generation, transmission and distribution through the public-private partnership (PPP) mechanism. Similar to law & order, citizens have been expressing their positive experiences with the power supply in the last few years.

The question in the survey tried to better understand from UP’s residents about how they rate improvement in power supply in their district in the last 5 years. In response, the majority of 55% of UP residents surveyed said the situation regarding power supply in their district has “significantly improved”, while 21% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 12% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 5% said it has “gotten worse”, and 4% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 76% of UP residents say that the power supply in their district has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 21% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,901 responses.

54% citizens say water supply in their district in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

Many regions in Uttar Pradesh still suffer from the dearth of water supply. In the state’s Bundelkhand, for example, people resorted to local fights and protests after water sources dried and ceased to exist, and authorities allegedly failed to meet the supply. In many areas, people have to walk for kilometers to fetch a pail of water. The following question asked to rate improvement in water supply in their city in the last 5 years. In response, 29% of UP residents surveyed said there has been “significant improvement” in water supply in their district, while 25% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 21% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 6% said it has “gotten worse”, and 14% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. 5% of residents couldn’t say. On an aggregate basis, 54% of UP residents say that water supply in their district has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 41% say it has not. This question in the survey received 9,045 responses.

83% citizens feel infrastructure in their district in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

The Yogi Adityanath-led UP Government undertook various infrastructure projects in the last few years. Some of these include Ashi Vishwanath Dham Project, AIIMS, Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor, Kushinagar airport, Bundelkhand Expressway, and Ganga Expressway. This has been another area where people by themselves have been coming forward to express and review the work being done. The next question in the survey asked Uttar Pradesh’s residents to rate improvement in overall infrastructure in their district in the last 5 years. In response, the majority of 53% of UP residents surveyed said the infrastructure in their district has “significantly improved”, while 30% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 7% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 4% said it has “gotten worse”, and 5% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. On an aggregate basis, 83% of UP residents say that infrastructure in their district has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 16% say it has not. This question in the survey received 4,486 responses.

52% citizens feel school education in Uttar Pradesh has improved in the last 5 years

According to a National Statistical Office (NSO) survey published in September 2020, Uttar Pradesh’s literacy rate is at 73%. Of which, the literacy rate in both rural and urban areas among men is 81.8% and among women is 63.4%. The State Government in its last state budget had announced an allocation of INR 18,172 crore for the Basic Education Department. The Government also announced a budget allocated for the integrated education campaign, providing free school bags and uniforms to all students from class 1 to class 8, a mid-day meal programme, improvement of secondary education, etc. It maintains that basic facilities for students in 1.39 lakh primary schools have smart classrooms, playgrounds, toilets, drinking water and libraries. The UP Government claims that 4.50 lakh youth have gotten government jobs in the state. At the same time, a lot remains on the wish list as far as education in schools is concerned. The pandemic has pushed many children, who did not have the facility of online learning, backward and a lot will need to be done in the next term to make progress.

The next question tried to understand from residents if there has been an improvement in the education sector of the state in the last 5 years. In response, 28% of UP residents surveyed said there has been “significant improvement” in the school education, while 24% said there has been “some improvement”. Breaking down the poll, 16% of residents said there has been “no improvement”, another 10% said it has “gotten worse”, and 8% said it has “gotten significantly worse”. 14% of residents couldn’t say. On an aggregate basis, 52% of UP residents say that school education in the state has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 34% say it has not. This question in the survey received 9,488 responses.

Only 35% citizens believe that Uttar Pradesh Government has taken steps in the last 5 years to improve air quality

Uttar Pradesh has the most polluted cities in the world. The state’s Ghaziabad is the 2nd most polluted city in the world with a PM2.5 of 106.6µg/m3, according to IQ Air’s World Air Quality Report 2020. Even in the capital city of the state of Lucknow, the air quality is so bad that residents, per Air Quality Life Index report, could lose 10.3 years of their life expectancy on average if the pollution persists. Noida also ranks in the top 10 most polluted cities of the world. Though some efforts have been made by the Government to curb the menace of toxic air, it is easy to spot garbage burning and violation of vehicular pollution and construction norms in the winter months when toxic smog engulfs many parts of the state. People clearly are not so happy with the work done in the first 5 years of the Government and want to see this as a priority.

The next question in the survey asked residents of Uttar Pradesh to rate the efforts of the State Government to improve air quality in the last 5 years. In response, 16% of UP residents said “excellent”, and 19% said “good”. 26% of residents said there have been “efforts but no results”, while 27% said the Government has “not done anything at all”, while 8% said they “have made things even worse”, and 4% couldn’t say. On an aggregate basis, only 35% of UP residents say that air quality in the state has improved in the last 5 years of Yogi Governance, while 61% say it has not. This question in the survey received 5,076 responses.

50% residents of Uttar Pradesh believe Yogi Government exceeded expectation in the last 5 years

The next and final question asked residents of Uttar Pradesh to rate the overall performance of the Yogi Government in the last 5 years. In response, 50% of residents rated 5 years of Yogi Government as “exceeded expectation”, and 18% said it has “met expectations”. 28% rated Yogi Government’s performance “below expectation”, and 4% did not have an opinion. On an aggregate basis, 50% residents of Uttar Pradesh believe Yogi Government exceeded expectations in the last 5 years. This question in the survey received 7,877 responses.

With clear delivery in areas of law & order, infrastructure, power supply, cleanliness and ease of doing business, and reducing corruption, the Yogi Adityanath led BJP Government came across as the Government that stood for systemic overhaul rather than catering to short-term political objectives. This is precisely the reason why people have rated the Government high at the 5-year mark. What people want to see in the second term now is a further development in these areas listed above but also a strong focus put on creating jobs, improving health and school education, water supply, air quality and communal harmony. Job creation is likely to be the top challenge for UP Government unless companies start locating their manufacturing and service enterprises to the state because of reasons of ease of doing business and good governance.

In summary, many people underestimated that Yogi Adityanath will be able to understand and handle governance when he was appointed as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. While he struggled a bit early on, his clear resolve on improving law and order and a no-nonsense approach to governance set him on a good footing. Being a 5-term parliamentarian though, he understood issues on the ground, the prevalent corruption in most aspects of governance in Uttar Pradesh, the lack of intent of those in power and attempted to find solutions to these issues. While one cannot say, many of them have been addressed yet, a good foundation has been set by him in these 5 years. With 50% of residents saying that the Government exceeded expectations in the last 5 years and most of them voting for his government once again, the ground is set for Yogi Adityanath to deliver good governance and transform Uttar Pradesh by 2027.