POVERTY IN INDIA

In the partial fulfilment of marking scheme of B.A.LL.B. (2nd semester)

Submitted To: Submitted By:

Dr.VikasNandal Nitin Verma
(Assistant Professor) B.A.LL.B.- 2nd Semester

Geeta Institute of Law

Session- 2020-2021
 Naina
B.A.LL.B.- 2nd Sem.

Geeta institute of law

Abstract –“so this study examines the empirical relationship among poverty and
economic growth in India approximately 896 million people in developing countries live
on $1.90 a day or less. Between 1990 and 2008, efforts to impact this issue we’re
successful and the no. Of people we’re successful and the no. Of people living in poverty
decreased by nearly half from 48 % to 26 % using data on consumption from the 13 to 55
rounds of the national sample survey the author computes, for both rural and urban
sectors, the guni coefficient and three popular measures of poverty. Poverty, food prices
and hunger are inextricably linked. Poverty causes hunger not every poor person is
hungry, but almost all hungry people are poor. Millions live with hunger and
malnourishment because they simply cannot afford to buy enough food, cannot afford
nutrition food or cannot afford the farming supplies of extreme poverty. The concept of
sustainable economic growth that implies progressive changes in the socio economic
formation of a country or society in terms of eradicate poverty, unemployment and also
inequality, illiteracy malnutrition has been accepted as a paper intension to desire for it.
This study is purely based on secondary data sources from ministry of labour and
employment government of India, planning commission report and etc. The analysis will
be done using the appropriate stastical tools and technique.

Keywords – poverty, employment generation, inequality, malnutrition.

Introduction-“poverty is one of the most widespread socio economic problems of India.

It is, indeed a common problem that is being faced with most of the underdeveloped and
the developing countries of the world. It is not only socio economic but even emotional,
cultural and political. The development that have been taking place in this land for the
past six decades have not been able to wipe out poverty.
As India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, poverty is on the
decline in the country, with close to 44 Indians escaping extreme poverty every
minute, as per the World Poverty Clock. India has been able to lift a significant
percentage of its population out of poverty, but many still live in it. India had 73
million people living in extreme poverty which makes up 5.5% of its total
population, according to the Brookings report. In May 2012, the World Bank
reviewed and proposed revisions to their poverty calculation methodology and
purchasing power parity basis for measuring poverty worldwide. It was a minimal
3.6% in terms of percentage. As of 2016, the incidence of multidimensional
poverty has almost halved between 2005–06 and 2015–16, declining from 54.7
percent to 27.5 percent . The Asian Development Bank estimates India's population
to be at 1.28 billion with an average growth rate of 1.3% from 2010–2015. In 2014,
49.9% of the population aged 15 years and above were employed. However, 21.9%
of the population still lives below the national poverty line. The World Poverty
Clock shows real-time poverty trends in India, which are based on the latest data,
of the World Bank, among others. As per recent estimates, the country is well on
its way of ending extreme poverty by meeting its sustainable development goals by
2030.

According to Oxfam, India's top 1% of the population now holds 73% of the wealth
while 670 million citizens, comprising the country's poorest half, saw their wealth
rise by just 1%. Poverty is not having enough material possessions or income for a
persons needs. Poverty may include social, economic and political elements
absolute poverty is the complete lack of the means necessary to meet basic personal
needs such as food , clothing and shelter.
For several thousand years, the world has been experiencing increased
urbanization. In 2008, the UN Population Fund announced that the world now has
more urban than rural inhabitants, and this trend is far from slowing down. It is
projected that between 2007 and 2050, the population of the world will increase by
2.5 billion, at which point two-thirds of the Global South will reside in urban areas.
About 27% of the world’s population will reside in cities with at least 1 million
inhabitants by 2030. Cities offer many health benefits, including large markets with
a reliable food supply, economies of scale, stable public services, and a collection
of educated individuals that contribute to enterprises, education, and innovation.

However, while urbanization has helped improve development and health in the
long run, it has produced some negative consequences as well. As populations
increase at unprecedented rates, communities are overwhelming cities that lack
adequate infrastructure and municipal organization to handle the rising challenges.
This situation is most problematic in the Global South, where urban slums and
other areas with concentrated populations have grown, thereby increasing
greenhouse gas emissions. Further, these countries face an elevated risk of disease,
while health care systems struggle to catch up and are unable to respond
effectively.
objectives

After studying this lesson you will be able to:

• understand the concept and meaning of poverty in India.

• Discuss about the effects of poverty.
Methodology
For the present study, we have used Secondary data which is taken from the various
newspapers, articles, books, internet, magazines etc.

What are poverty Levels

Measures of poverty have traditionally been based on income or consumption, and

many official measures of poverty, particularly in the Global South, are still
centered on these figures. To calculate food consumption, a standard measure is
specified, typically in terms of a “basket” of basic nutritional necessities. The
estimated monetary income required to purchase the basket then sets the food
poverty line. To calculate the overall poverty line, non-food goods and services
such as shelter, health care and clothing are added to the food calculations.
Additionally, surveys of living standards gauge consumption based on ownership
of items such as a bicycle or refrigerator, and include questions about the materials
used to construct the home.
Recently, the focus has moved beyond traditional measures and switched to a more
multidimensional analysis, as income or consumption alone may produce false
notions of poverty. In his Population Bulletin, Mark Montgomery provides a
framework for multiple aspects of urban well-being. This consists of the following
areas:
 Health
 Consumption (of private goods and services, leisure, shelter, and health services)
 Freedom from violence and crime
 Personal efficacy
 Collective efficacy and political voice
Links between dimensions can provide a more comprehensive understanding of
poverty. For instance, a household that is not considered poor in terms of one of the
above variables may lack in many other vital areas of well-being. This is clear in
places such as Indian slums, where many families’ consumption levels place them
far above the poverty line, though their houses are so poorly constructed that they
could be considered inhospitable.
Urban absolute poverty usually includes interrelated deprivations relating to each of
Montgomery’s dimensions. These typically include:
 Inadequate income and problems with debt
 Inadequate and unstable asset base (both material and nonmaterial such as
housing and education)
 Inadequate shelter
 Inadequate supply of basic services
 Limited or no safety net to ensure basic consumption and access to shelter and
health care when income falls
 Inadequate provision of public infrastructure
 Inadequate protection of rights through the law
 Voicelessness and powerlessness as a group within political systems, resulting in
little chance of receiving support for the community’s own initiatives or
ensuring aid from NGOs, public agencies, and private utilities

Poverty in India
So the 22% of the total population in India (around 270 crores) live in poverty.
“What exactly is poverty?”, you may ask. Poverty means living in conditions of
where a person doesn’t have basic needs like proper food, water or shelter. This is
tricky, as different places have different understandings of poverty at different
times. For example, a poor person in the USA could be one who doesn’t own a car.
But in India, having a car is a luxury only some can dream of. Thus, measuring
several aspects of one’s nutrition and income determines poverty in India.

Therefore, in India, an urban dweller should have at least 2100 calories and a rural
dweller, at least 2400 calories per day. There is a difference, as the physical work
done in rural areas is more energy consuming than in urban areas.

Additionally, earning a minimum of 32 rupees in urban areas and 26 rupees in rural

areas, per day, determines the “Below Poverty Line” criteria. The minimum income
is higher in urban areas, as it is more costly to live in towns than villages.
There is also an international standard by The World Bank, where people are living
in poverty if they earn less than $1.90 (almost 140 rupees) per day! This is a much
higher standard than that of India’s way of measurement.

Causes of poverty in India

There are multiple things that cause poverty. However, in India, the first major
factor was the exploitative British colonial rule. Throughout the process of
colonizing India, the British plundered the wealth of India, by taking away raw
materials for cheap and selling it back to India at very high prices. This led to the
shut down of indigenous factories and mills in India and India became heavily
economically dependent.

Even after they left, India was plagued with illiterate masses and a huge population.
In rural areas, there was a huge problem of lack of land resources, per person as the
population was in excess. These led to almost no economic growth till the 1980s.
Even today, there are many schemes for anti-poverty but poverty is still a problem
due to the lack of implementation of these schemesCasteism though has certain
benefits to the member of the caste on the individual basies has several harmful
effects on society as a whole.
Poverty also has other several dimensions. When you get sick, your mother can take you
to the hospital and buy medicines. But what do you think people who earn 50 rupees per
day do for their family? You can dream of becoming a doctor or designer, but what about
children who wake up worrying about if they will eat that day? Thus, poverty is also a
condition where the very poor don’t have access to health care, education, employment,
safety and other facilities.

Nature of Poverty in India:

According to the Human Development Report of 1977, poverty is the denial of
opportunities, to lead a long, healthy creative life and to enjoy a decent standard of
living, freedom, dignity, self-respect and the respect of others. Hungers are the
extreme situation of poverty.

Measurement of Poverty:
In our country, we might see some of our neighbors finding it difficult to get food
even twice a day. Some children in our neighborhood may look weak and highly
malnourished because they do not get sufficient and nutritious food. They may not
even be having enough clothes to wear. In our country larger section of people are
deprived of these basic necessities.
During 1999-2000 about 26 crore people in India are reported to be poverty ridden.
In 1999 using income approach the government found 720 lakh families living
below poverty line.
Poverty line is drawn on the basis of minimum desirable nutritional standards of
calorie intake. Poverty line is a line of measurement to judge the intensity of
poverty prevailing among different classes of the people. In 1999-2000, 26.02 crore
people were living below the poverty line. According to the UNDP Human
Development Report 2003, India is home to the largest number of hungry people
23.3 million.
Removal of Poverty

Since Independence, removal of poverty has been one of the major objectives of
economic planning in India. Several land reforms measures such as abolition of
Zamindari system, security of tenant farmers, and fixation of rents and distribution
of surplus land among small and landless farmers were undertaken by the
government.

Cottage and small-scale industries, which employ more laborer’s and less
machinery, were encouraged. Efforts for the development of green revolution and
heavy industries have been made to create employment opportunities and incomes.

In the 1980s the government has undertaken some of the poverty alleviation
programmers. Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY) was launched in
April 1999 to help the families below poverty line by providing financial assistance
and technology arrangement. Another Programme Jawahar Gra Samridhi Yojana
(JGSY) was generating employment for those men and women who do not get
sufficient days of employment in rural areas.

Prime Ministers Rozgar Yozna (PMRY) and Swarnajayanti Sahara Rozgar

Yojana (SJSRY) were launched to provide self-employment to the educated
unemployed in the urban areas. Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS and
Pradhanmantri Gramodya Yojana (PMGY) were launched in 1999 and 2000-01
respectively. The objective of these schemes was to create wage employment for
families below poverty line and improving the quality of life in rural areas.

Eradication of poverty needs very great strength. We have been able to alleviate
poverty to some extent through various governmental programmers and schemes.
The benefits did not percolate to the lower levels too much because of adverse
institutional framework.
Effects of Poverty:-
It affects people living in a lot of ways. Also, it has various effects that include
illiteracy, reduced nutrition and diet, poor housing, child labor, unemployment,
poor hygiene and lifestyle, and feminization of poverty, etc. Besides, this poor
people cannot afford a healthy and balanced diet, nice clothes, proper education, a
stable and clean house, etc. because all these facilities require money and they don’t
even have money to feed two meals a day then how can they afford to pay for these
facilities.

For solving the problem of poverty it is necessary for us to act quickly and
correctly. Some of the ways of solving these problems are to provide proper
facilities to farmers. So, that they can make agriculture profitable and do not
migrate to cities in search of employment.

Also, illiterate people should be given the required training so that they can live a
better life. To check the rising population, family planning should be followed.
Besides, measures should be taken to end corruption, so that we can deal with the
gap between rich and poor.

In conclusion, poverty is not the problem of a person but of the whole nation. Also,
it should be deal with on an urgent basis by the implementation of effective
measures. In addition, eradication of poverty has become necessary for the
sustainable and inclusive growth of people, society, country, and economy.
Economic growth and globalization are central to the fight against poverty. India’s
economic growth has risen from an annual rate of 1.06 in 1991, to 9.67% in 2006
following neo-liberal reforms in 1991, falling to 7.09% in 2008 (WDI, 2008).
However, the urban-driven growth has only benefited a minority.

There is no evidence of the ‘trickle down1’ model, and many journalists such as
Senath (The Hindu, 2010) have continuously blamed economic reforms for the
stagnated poverty in rural India. The financial crisis and significant fiscal deficit
threatens progress of poverty reduction, and the 2010 budget neglected the poor by
not increasing the tax limit for those earning rupees 1.6lakh.

DFID’s website claims “effective government is the single most important

determinant of whether people are lifted out of poverty”. India has a federal system,
with state control of poverty reduction schemes. Despite installing a system with
the potential to be “better able to meet the needs of the poor” (Johnson, 2003), the
central and state government clash has resulted in inadequate implementation and
power centralized within local elite.

Central government has shown commitment to poverty reduction with the

Millennium Development Goals and introduction of National Five Year Plans.

Urban Poverty:-
Several features distinguish urban poverty from poverty in other areas. As Mark
Montgomery summarizes in his report, these features include:
“The monetization of urban living; the spatial concentration of the population in
environments that are sometimes but not always well-supplied with protective
public services; the inescapable economic and social diversity that confronts the
urban-dweller in daily life; and the geographic proximity of modern health care
institutions that may nevertheless lie beyond the reach of the poor – these and
similar factors are far more prominent in urban than in rural settings.

Rural poverty:-
In rural India a large chunk of people live in deep poverty and most of them are
victims of inadequate nutrition’s. The rural poor devote, on average, something like
80% of their expenditure on food item. The absolute magnitude of the poor has
been increasing by substantial amounts and will continue to increase in both rural
and urban Indian.
Urban and Rural Poverty Comparisons:-
Though cities are growing, most of the poor populations of the world remain in
rural areas. Rural areas are home to about 75% of the poor and are still expected to
house 60% by 2025. Based on comparison studies, rural populations of Vietnam,
India, and Zimbabwe suffered significantly more than urban populations did in
categories that included numbers of impoverished residents, child mortality rates,
sanitation quality, and levels of education. This suggests that when dealing with
averages (and not distinguishing between rich and poor urban groups), there
appears to be what is generally considered an “urban advantage.”
On the other hand, averages do not account for major differences between
socioeconomic groups within each region, and they do not reflect multidimensional
forms of poverty. Large groups of the urban poor live in environments equal to or
worse than those of rural villagers, in terms of health. Though rural families may
not have the sanitation services, for instance, that many urbanites have, rural
communities have lower population densities, helping to limit the spread of disease.
Thus, even if there is an “urban advantage” in some aspects of life, there can also
be an “urban disadvantage” in other dimensions, creating concepts of “poor” that
are not necessarily related to income or consumption. While many differences exist
within cities, variety between cities is also important to note. In East Asia, for
example, “more than 90 % of the poor live in rural areas,” while Latin America and
the Caribbean have more of an urban poor population, with rural families
comprising 40% of the poor.
When comparing averages, it is important to remember that city and countryside
communities work together and influence each other. Christopher Dye of the
World Health Organization (WHO) uses the term “national metabolism” to describe
the interaction between cities and rural areas. Studies show that the wealth of cities
often directly benefits rural villagers. On the other hand, greater availability of jobs
draws people to migrate to cities, where they then suffer from unfamiliar urban
poverty. In this way, improvements in rural poverty can aid urban poverty as well..

Types of Poor:-
The urban poor are not a homogenous group; there are three discernible categories of poor
urban dwellers, according to Akin L. Mahoganies , Chairman of the Presidential Technical
Board of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria. The first is the “new poor” who have
been recently impoverished, and the second is the “borderline poor” who are employed
yet unskilled and below the poverty line. The third is the “chronic poor” who have been
poor for five or more years and are sometimes impoverished due to the process of
migration to cities, rather than from urban poverty itself. Furthermore, children make up a
large percentage of the urban poor population. For example, in Bangladesh, the majority
of residents are under fifteen years old. Despite child advocacy interventions, many of
these children and teenagers are part of the workforce.
Slums:-
A large proportion of cities’ poor residents live in slums. According to studies by WHO
and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), one third of all
urban inhabitants reside in slums or informal settlements, and more than 90% of slums
exist in cities within developing countries. Typically, the fastest growing cities have the
highest concentrations of these settlements. In a recent study comparing regions in the
developing world, Sub-Saharan Africa was found to have the highest rate (62%) of urban
residents living in slums.
A slum residence is defined by UN-HABITAT as one with “inadequate housing,
sanitation, tenure security, and no or few basic services.This type of housing exists in a
variety of forms, “from high-rise tenements to shacks to plastic sheet tents on sidewalks.
These critical challenges that slums face should be the focus of future development
strategies, as slums often have the worst conditions and health risks within cities.

Conclusion:- poverty is not the problem of a person but of the whole nation. Also, it
should be deal with on an urgent basis by the implementation of effective measures. In
addition eradication poverty has became necessary for the sustainable inclusive growth
people, society, country and economy.
Reference :-

 Www.wikipedia.org
 Http//learn.culturalindia.net.