The Numbers Behind CJP's 5 Demands: What It Would Actually Cost India to Fix the Youth Jobs Crisis

The Cockroach Janta Party's manifesto lists five demands — free WiFi for citizens, minimum-wage politicians, independent media, an independent judiciary and real youth employment. Business Standard's economics desk runs the numbers: what each demand would cost the Indian exchequer, which are fiscally feasible within two budget cycles, and which are structural reforms that no budget line can buy. The conclusion is uncomfortable: most of CJP's demands cost far less than what India currently spends on subsidies that favour neither the poor nor the young.