For many years, the writer of this article has been working on what is today called ‘direct cash transfers’ or, more correctly, ‘cash benefits’. I begin with that remark because recently there has been a tumult of shrill commentary in the media, much of it by commentators who appear to have little knowledge of what they involve and little respect for objectivity. Let me give further context to the following. For the past four years, I have been working with SEWA and UNICEF on implementing and evaluating three pilot cash benefit schemes in different parts of India. What must be understood is that, even if the rationale for cash benefits were impeccable, the political strategy will be crucial. Public opinion will have to be convinced that they make sense. If reform is rammed through without intellectual preparation, it will backfire, and the legitimacy of a desirable reform could be so eroded that the cause will be put back for years. Let us recollect what is at stake, and plead with advocates and critics for dispassionate analysis. Let us also make the heroic assumption that advocates and critics share a desire to reduce poverty more effectively, reverse the growth of inequality, boost economic development, and reduce government budget deficits to more sustainable levels.