In the Indian context, meal cards (commonly known as meal vouchers) have played a positive role in multiple ways. First, the meal card has played a positive role in extending social benefits to employees by improving the supply chain for meal services. Second, the meal card has also helped the Government by the collection of additional indirect taxes in the meal card value chain through participating outlets. The meal card programme further had a positive impact by transformation of informal economy into formal economy in the restaurants/eatery sector. Despite this, the benefits of MV have been rather understated and it is merely treated as a fiscal incentive for employees with a fiscal limit of INR 50 per meal that was set in 2001. This study attempts to quantify the value gains of MVs through the use of extensive secondary data and structured interviews with employers, employees, merchants and other significant players in the value system.
Pahlé India Foundation
Putting India First to Make India First
