‘One Nation One Election’ May Boost Economy, Minimise Disruptions: Experts NK Singh & Prachi Mishra Tell JPC
They suggested that conducting Lok Sabha and Assembly elections together could significantly improve India’s economic growth, investment atmosphere, and administrative efficiency.
A meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), chaired by BJP MP PP Chaudhary, was held on Wednesday in Parliament to deliberate on the important ‘One Nation One Election’ legislation. The day’s agenda was titled: “Interaction with Shri NK Singh, former Rajya Sabha Member, Chairman of the Fifteenth Finance Commission of India, former Member of the Planning Commission, former Revenue Secretary, Secretary to former Prime Minister and noted economist on the said Bills, assisted by Dr Prachi Mishra, Professor of Economics and Head & Director of the Isaac Centre for Public Policy, Ashoka University.”
In a presentation, NK Singh and Prachi Mishra put forward a strong economic rationale for simultaneous polls. They argued that holding general and state elections together could considerably enhance India’s GDP growth, improve investor sentiment, and streamline governance.
They projected that real GDP growth is, on average, 1.5 percentage points higher around the time of simultaneous elections compared to staggered ones. This translates into an economic benefit of nearly ₹4.5 lakh crore in present terms—equivalent to half of the Union Health Budget or a third of the Education Budget.
While fiscal deficits typically rise by around 1.3% of GDP following elections, they pointed out that spending becomes more productive, with the capital-to-revenue expenditure ratio increasing by 5.4 percentage points post simultaneous elections. This reflects a better focus on infrastructure development and long-term growth investment.
They also observed that Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF)—an indicator of investment trends—is 0.5 percentage points higher after concurrent polls, indicating improved business confidence among domestic and foreign investors.
Frequent and staggered elections, however, cause widespread disruptions across economic and social sectors. Industries such as manufacturing, construction, healthcare, and tourism face uncertainty repeatedly. Migrant labourers, who make up nearly one-third of India’s population, are significantly affected. Frequent polls force them to return home multiple times, leading to wage losses and missed opportunities to vote.
These disturbances also affect education and law enforcement. Primary school enrolment drops by 0.5 percentage points around staggered polls, primarily due to teachers being deployed on election duty and schools being used as polling centres. Crime rates also see a sharper increase during such elections as police resources are diverted for longer durations.
A particularly striking point made was that India has witnessed elections every year since 1986, placing the country in a near-permanent election cycle. This leads to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) being implemented as many as four times within a five-year period, hampering governance and slowing down development initiatives.
Frequent elections also result in political repercussions, including a surge in populist schemes across states and a sharp increase in fiscally unsustainable giveaways. NK Singh warned that this leads to a “race to the bottom” in fiscal populism.
In the agriculture sector, this creates policy instability. Issues like minimum support prices (MSPs), subsidies, and loan waivers become unpredictable, confusing farmers and affecting their ability to plan for the long term.
These observations are expected to further energise the debate around the viability and benefits of One Nation One Election. Supporters argue that it can improve governance stability, reduce populist competition, and support consistent policymaking.
The JPC includes members such as Supriya Sule (NCP), Mukul Wasnik, Randeep Surjewala, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (all from Congress), Anil Desai (Shiv Sena UBT), and Kalyan Banerjee (TMC). The ruling NDA is represented by leaders including Anurag Thakur, Sambit Patra, Bhartruhari Mahtab, Baijayant Panda, Anil Baluni (all BJP), Shrikant Shinde (Shiv Sena), and Harish Balayogi (TDP), among others.
The JPC was formed during the last Winter Session of Parliament after the government agreed to subject the ONOE Bill to in-depth legislative review. Initially introduced by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, the panel was later expanded to include 39 members following demands from opposition parties.
