Indians have high opinions of President Obama.
By Raif Karerat
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More than a year after sweeping Indian elections and initiating widespread political change throughout the country, Indian support for Prime Minster Narendra Modi has yet to abate. A new poll by the Pew Research Center shows the Indian public’s views of their nation’s direction and the economy are still on the rise.
Key takeaways from the report include:
- “Indians are overwhelmingly more positive about their country than they were two years ago.” Fifty-six percent of Indians express satisfaction with their country’s direction – up 27 percentage points from 2013. Nearly three-quarters say the current state of the economy is good, whereas only 57% said so two years ago.
- “Indians’ love for Modi runs across the country.” A whopping 87 percent of Indians have a favorable view of India prime minister, including a strong majority (68 percent) who view him “very favorably.” Among all respondents — men and women, the young and old, the urban and rural populations, and members of the three national political parties — an overwhelming majority holds “very favorable” views of the prime minister. One exception is supporters of the main opposition party, the Indian National Congress.
- “Environmental issues are a growing concern.” Indian appear increasingly worried about air pollution. Roughly 75 percent of Indians say air pollution is a “very big” problem compared with about only half who voiced that view in 2014 – a rise of 22 percentage points. Among global issues, Indians are most concerned about climate change. More than 73 percent are “very concerned” about global climate change, compared with 49 percent who are concerned with global economic instability, the second-highest response.
- “Indians are also very concerned about economic issues: a lack of employment opportunities, rising prices and, to a lesser extent, the gap between the rich and the poor.” Eighty-seven percent say joblessness is a very big problem facing India, an 8-point rise in such concern since 2014, but roughly comparable to unease about jobs in 2013. The same percentage (87 percent) complains about inflation. This proportion is largely unchanged since 2013. Inequality (74 percent) is seen as slightly less of a problem — such concern is up from 2014 but down 8 points since 2013.
- “Indians give a thumbs-up to the national government and the military.” Since 2014, the government saw a 30 percentage point increase in those who say its influence is “very good.” A colossal 95 percent say the military’s influence is good – with nearly three-quarters saying it is “very good.”
- “Indians have high opinions of the U.S. and President [Barack] Obama.” Seventy percent of Indians hold a favorable view of the U.S., while ratings of President Obama — who visited India in January 2015 — are even higher. Nearly three-quarters of the Indian public express confidence in him to take the right course of action regarding world affairs.
- “Indians look with less favor on other nations.” Just 43 percent have a positive view of Russia, relatively unchanged over the past few years. Forty-one percent see China favorably, yet that sentiment is up 10 points from 2014. And just 28 percent are favorably disposed toward Iran.
- “… Indians’ expectations for the next generation have risen.” In 2013, 64 percent thought that when Indian children grew up they would be better off financially than their parents. In 2015, 74 percent voice such optimism. Notably, 88 percent of those living in the south – the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu – see a bright future for today’s children. But only 68 percent of people living in the eastern states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal are as hopeful.