Bihar Election Results: Behind NDA Tsunami — The Rs 10,000 Sop For Women Hailed As 'Economic Gamechanger'

Bihar has seen a repeat of Maharashtra, as much to the shock of pollsters, the ruling National Democratic Alliance has totally annihilated the Opposition. While the NDA win was on the cards, none of the pre- or post-election surveys projected the coalition to win around 200 of the 243 seats.

So, what connects the NDA's tsunami-like mandate in Bihar with its historic victory in Maharashtra last year? The answer, say analysts, primarily lies in the direct-benefit-transfer (DBT) schemes that connect with women voters.

In Maharashtra, it was the Ladki Bahin Scheme that ensured Rs 1,500 a month deposited in female voters' account ahead of the assembly polls in October 2024. The scheme was implemented three months before the polls, and resulted in a cumulative transfer of Rs 4,500 per beneficiary days before the polls.

A year later, in Bihar, the NDA took a page out of its Maharashtra playbook, and decided to transfer Rs 10,000 to over one crore women under the 'Mukhyamantri Mahila Rozgar Yojana'. The amounted was deposited in the beneficiaries' accounts days before the elections, which, say analysts, boosted Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's welfare-centric image in the minds of voters ahead of the polls.

Women-Centric Campaign Pays Off

Nitish's pro-incumbency wave was powered by women voters, several exit polls suggested. The Rs 10,000 sop primarily boosted his appeal among Bihar's Jeevika Didis, who are often seen as the core voter support base of the Janata Dal (United).

Bihar, this time, recorded the highest female voter turnout in its history. Per the data released by the Election Commission, the female turnout was 69.04% in the first phase held on Nov. 6, as against 61.56% for men.

In the second phase of polling held on Nov. 11, the women voters again turned out in larger numbers at 74.03% against a male voter turnout of 64.1%.

"There is a significant surge in women's support for the NDA. The margin seems to be 20-30% over the Opposition. BJP and JDU each are more than the entire Mahagathbandhan's vote share. It shows the scale of the victory," psephologist Amitabh Tiwari told NDTV.

In both Maharashtra and Bihar, the women-centric initiatives resulted in a huge electoral dividend. In Maharashtra, the NDA won 230 out of the 288 seats. In Bihar, the Election Commission's trends so far show an NDA victory in 204 out of the 243 constituencies.

Economic Gamechanger?

The Rs 10,000 sop for women in Bihar is not just a political masterstroke, but an "economic gamechanger", according to a section of experts.

This is not a one-off aid, explained Amitabh Tewari, who is also the founder of VoteVibe, a research organisation. As per the scheme, the government will help those who effectively use the amount to avail loans worth Rs 2 lakh worth from banks at low interest rates, he pointed out.

This makes it starkly different from the monthly doles rolled out for women in other states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand. Instead of a monthly support, the government in Bihar aims to boost micro-entrepreneurship among women, by providing a pathway to secure affordable credit.

Tewari noted that around 58% of women beneficiaries, whom his organisation surveyed, said they would use the cash transfer by the government for some kind of small business.

Dr Neeraj Kaushal, associate professor of social work at Columbia University, also believed that Nitish Kumar's scheme is significant, as microfinance improves the rate of entrepreneurship.

The DBT scheme is also significant considering the fact that the Rs 10,000 sop is higher than what an average household in Bihar earns in a month. The average per capita income in the state stood at Rs 69,321 in fiscal year 2025, which takes the monthly earning to less than Rs 6,000.

Cost Of Welfare

Rolling out an impactful DBT scheme has a cost on the exchequer. In Maharashtra, the Ladli Bahin Scheme was rolled out with an annual outlay of Rs 46,000 crore.

Bihar, which is a much poorer state as compared to Maharashtra with a smaller gross domestic product, rolled out the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rozgar Yojana at a fiscal cost of Rs 10,000 crore.

In the backdrop of this squeeze on the exchequer, author and economist Surjit Bhalla told NDTV last week that the government need to come to "some kind of resolution on this whole business of freebies".

The freebies have "gone too far", Bhalla said, referring to similar cash sops rolled out in other states in recent years. "It's not the most efficient way to bring welfare," he had argued.