Public opinion study
If You Ran the Country?
A Hercules study of 2,052 Indians asked what they would fix if they ran the country. 83.0% would pay a ring-fenced local Green Tax, and 70.6% trust technology to fix administrative problems. No sector wins more than 18.1% as the top priority, and public safety ranks as the most urgent national issue.
Explore the findingsWilling if 100% funds local city cleaning
Rate confidence 4 or 5 out of 5 that technology can solve administrative problems
The most chosen Day-1 sector, Economy and Job Creation
Based on 2,052 completed responses. Public opinion study.
What we set out to answer, and what we found
We asked India what it would fix first if it ran the country
What is the single top priority?
If you were the Prime Minister for one day, which sector would be your absolute top priority? Respondents picked one sector from a list of six.
What feels most urgent?
We asked people to rank five national issues from most to least urgent, then computed a Borda consensus score for each.
How do services and technology feel today?
We measured satisfaction with employment opportunities, the experience of the last government service interaction, and confidence that technology can solve administrative problems.
Will people pay for local fixes?
We tested willingness to pay a local Green Tax when 100% of the money is ring-fenced for cleaning the city, and whether that tracks confidence in technology.
People will pay for local fixes if the money is ring-fenced. 83.0% would pay a local Green Tax if 100% of it went to cleaning their city. When people can see where the money goes, they are ready to commit.
Tech optimism spans age groups. 70.6% rate their confidence that technology can solve administrative bottlenecks at 4 or 5 out of 5. Those aged 55 and above give a top-box 5 more often (34.7%) than 18 to 24 year olds (26.2%).
No single issue has a mandate. The top Prime Minister for a day priority, Economy and Job Creation, gets only 18.1% of the vote, with Education Reform close behind at 17.4%. A campaign built on one issue will miss most people.
Safety is the most urgent issue. Improving Public Safety tops the national urgency ranking (mean rank 1.73, 37.0% first-place votes), ahead of transport infrastructure and inflation. Rural digital connectivity trails.
Jobs are the sorest point. 58.8% rate employment opportunities Average or worse, and 23.7% call them Poor or Very Poor. Skill-building and job-readiness offer the biggest payoff.
Government services score better than the common story. 63.4% rate their last government interaction 7 to 10 out of 10. That raises the bar for civic-tech products, which need to deliver a very good experience, not just basic digital access.
Most Urgent Issue
Top of the Borda urgency ranking, mean rank 1.73
No single mandate: the top Day-1 priority wins only 18.1%
We asked which sector people would make their absolute top priority if they were Prime Minister for a day.
Absolute Top Priority as Prime Minister for a Day
Single choice, % of respondents. Base: 2,052
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Economy and Job Creation | 18.1% |
| Education Reform | 17.4% |
| Technology and Innovation | 17.3% |
| Environmental Sustainability | 16.5% |
| National Security | 15.4% |
| Healthcare Infrastructure | 15.3% |
01. Answers are spread almost evenly across six sectors. Economy and Job Creation (18.1%) and Education Reform (17.4%) lead by a whisker, and no single mandate emerges.
02. Economy and Job Creation is strongest among 25 to 35 year olds, mid-career professionals, at 22.2%.
03. Those aged 18 to 24 put immediate economic issues lower. Only 15.4% chose Economy and Job Creation, 6.8 points below 25 to 35 year olds, and Technology and Innovation ties with Environmental Sustainability at 18.0% each.
04. Older groups lean towards foundations. Education Reform leads at 21.8% among 46 to 55 year olds.
Public safety dominates the national urgency ranking
Respondents ranked five national issues from most to least urgent for the government to address.
Share Ranking Each Issue Most Urgent
First-place votes, Borda analysis. Base: 2,052
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Improving Public Safety | 37% |
| Upgrading Transportation Infrastructure | 31% |
| Reducing Inflation (Price Rise) | 22.6% |
| Digital Connectivity in Rural Areas | 6.1% |
| Waste Management and Cleanliness | 3.3% |
Mean Urgency Rank
Lower means more urgent, ranked 1 to 5. Base: 2,052
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Value |
|---|---|
| Improving Public Safety | 1.73 |
| Upgrading Transportation Infrastructure | 1.97 |
| Reducing Inflation (Price Rise) | 2.05 |
| Digital Connectivity in Rural Areas | 3.09 |
| Waste Management and Cleanliness | 3.49 |
01. Improving Public Safety leads with a Borda total of 2,816, a mean rank of 1.73 and 37.0% of first-place votes. 53.2% place it in their top three.
02. Transportation Infrastructure comes second (Borda 2,535, 31.0% first place), and 50.4% place it in their top three. That gives local transit advocacy a real opening.
03. Those aged 18 to 24 feel the safety gap most. They rank public safety at an average of 1.66, against 1.85 for 25 to 35 year olds.
04. Rural digital connectivity trails at 6.1% of first-place votes and 20.1% top-three. Digital-only initiatives may struggle unless they are tied to safety or transit benefits.
Employment is a volatile pain point: 58.8% rate it Average or worse
We asked how satisfied people are with employment opportunities in India today.
Satisfaction With Employment Opportunities
% of respondents
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Excellent | 15.2% |
| Good | 26% |
| Average | 35.1% |
| Poor | 14.5% |
| Very Poor | 9.2% |
01. 41.2% rate employment opportunities favourably (26.0% Good and 15.2% Excellent). That leaves 58.8% who are not satisfied.
02. The largest single group is in the middle. 35.1% rate employment as Average, more than a third of respondents still waiting for things to improve.
03. Nearly a quarter are in real distress. 23.7% rate the job market Poor (14.5%) or Very Poor (9.2%).
63.4% report low friction in their last government interaction
Respondents thought of the last time they used a government service, such as renewing a licence or visiting a government office, and rated the experience out of 10.
Experience of Last Government Service Interaction
Rating from 1 (worst) to 10 (best), % of respondents
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| 1 | 2.8% |
| 2 | 5.6% |
| 3 | 6.3% |
| 4 | 7.2% |
| 5 | 7.4% |
| 6 | 7.4% |
| 7 | 14.8% |
| 8 | 13.3% |
| 9 | 15.2% |
| 10 | 20.1% |
01. Nearly two-thirds (63.4%) rated their last government interaction between 7 and 10 out of 10, and 20.1% gave a perfect 10. The idea that bureaucracy fails everyone does not hold up.
02. Still, 21.9% had a rough time (rating 1 to 4). They are a motivated audience for tools that help with administrative work.
03. Among those who rate national sectors as merely Average, 17% rated their last direct government interaction a 7 out of 10. Frustration seems to come more from the national story than from personal experience.
70.6% trust technology to solve administrative bottlenecks
On a scale of 1 to 5, we asked how confident people are that technology can solve most of India's current administrative problems.
Confidence That Technology Can Solve Administrative Problems
Rating from 1 (low) to 5 (high), % of respondents
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1.6% |
| 2 | 7.3% |
| 3 | 20.6% |
| 4 | 42.4% |
| 5 | 28.2% |
Top-Box Confidence (5 out of 5) by Age
% of each age group
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| 18-24 | 26.2% |
| 25-35 | 31.2% |
| 36-45 | 30.6% |
| 46-55 | 24.1% |
| 55+ | 34.7% |
01. 70.6% rate their confidence 4 or 5 out of 5 (42.4% a 4, 28.2% a 5). Digital-first services should meet little resistance from scepticism about technology itself.
02. Those aged 25 to 35 are the most tech-ready group, with 72.2% rating their confidence 4 or 5.
03. Older respondents are just as upbeat. 34.7% of those aged 55 and above give a top-box 5, 8.5 points more than 18 to 24 year olds (26.2%).
83.0% would pay a ring-fenced local Green Tax
We asked whether people would pay a Green Tax if 100% of the money went to cleaning their local city, and whether tech optimism goes with it.
Willing to Pay a Ring-Fenced Local Green Tax
% of respondents
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Willing to pay | 83% |
| Not willing | 17% |
01. 83.0% would pay a local Green Tax if 100% of the money went to cleaning their city. This suggests resistance to environmental taxes comes from lack of trust more than from unwillingness to pay.
02. Among the 1,448 citizens who rate their confidence in technology 4 or 5 out of 5, 87.2% are willing to pay the Green Tax.
03. The report flags this link as directional only. It is a soft pattern and does not show cause and effect.
Social media leads as the primary source of national news
We asked where people mainly get information about the country's performance.
Primary Source of National Performance Information
Single-channel answers, % of respondents. Base: 2,052
View the data behind this chart
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| Social media (X, Instagram, etc.) | 16.1% |
| Television news channels | 12.8% |
| Newspapers (print/e-paper) | 11.8% |
| Podcasts or YouTube analysis | 11.4% |
| Digital news portals/apps | 11.3% |
01. Social media is the most cited primary source at 16.1%, ahead of television news (12.8%) and newspapers (11.8%).
02. The rest named combinations of two or three channels, each under 2% on its own.
What we would recommend
Practical priorities drawn from this study for further validation.
Lead with physical security and community safety.
Public safety tops the national urgency ranking, so safety-first messaging is the best anchor for civic mobilisation and campaigns.
Build transparent, hyper-local Green Tax tools with real-time tracking.
83.0% will pay when funds are strictly ring-fenced. Any platform you launch needs real-time fund tracking to keep that trust.
Prepare segmented, localised messaging rather than one national narrative.
The top Day-1 sector gets only 18.1% of the vote, so a broad national campaign will water down engagement. Segment by region and by age group, and speak to local priorities.
Build skill-building and employment-matching platforms.
With 58.8% rating employment opportunities Average or worse, tools for livelihood-matching and skill-building have a ready audience.
Deliver exceptional experiences, not minor upgrades.
63.4% already report low friction with government services, so a new civic-tech product has to be clearly better to displace existing channels.
Distribute through digital-first, social-native channels.
Social media leads as the primary source of national performance information at 16.1%, so build campaigns to be shared on social.
