After the 'ease of doing business' report, and the Moody's upgrade, the Narendra Modi-led government got yet another boost through a recent world survey that ranked India as the third-most trusted government in the world.
As per the ‘Government at a Glance’ survey conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 73 percent of the surveyed 1,000 Indians expressed their confidence in the government.
The report ranks India third in the list, just below Switzerland and Indonesia. The survey asks the respondents a single question on whether they believe in their government or not, without specifying any part of the government.
According to a report by the World Economic Forum (WEF), the recent 'anti-corruption and tax-reform drive' could be the reason behind the country's citizens instilling their trust in the government. The WEF draws this conclusion based on the fact that indicators such as political upheaval, state of the economy, and major corruption cases affect the measure of trust instilled in a government directly.
Union Health Minister JP Nadda took to Twitter to congratulate the government, stating that every Indian is seeing a New India under the leadership of Modi.
Trust in the government is positively correlated with the public's approval of their leadership, and the perceived spread of corruption in the government.
Drop in India's Trust in Government
It should, however, be noted that the data in the survey is a comparison of the percentage measured in 2007, as against 2016. In 2007, 82% of the people surveyed expressed their confidence in the government, as compared to the 73% in 2016. This indicates a nine point drop in the trust levels.
According to the OECD report, the values for 2007 was before the onset of financial and economic crisis.
The report shows that on an average, less than half (42%) countries have trust in their national government.
The maximum drop in trust levels was experienced by the governments of Chile, Finland, Greece and Slovenia where the percentage fell by over 20%.
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