Poverty implies a condition in which a person finds him unable
to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and
mental efficiency. He even fails to meet his basic requirements.
Poverty is in fact a relative concept. It is very difficult to draw a
demarcation line between affluence and poverty.
An estimated 29.8% of Indians live below the
country’s national poverty line in 2010 (see point 2 below). Here
are two graphs showing the evolution of the poverty rate –
percentages of poor Indians
The state of Uttar Pradesh alone has 8% of the world’s
population who live in extreme poverty. However, it’s not
India’s poorest state. With a population of 100 million people,
Bihar is poorest. More than half of children under 3 suffer from
malnutrition. One in three malnourished children is Indian, and
rates of malnutrition are higher in India than in sub-Saharan
Africa. Nearly a third of all newborn deaths occur in India.
Indian soil is fertile, so are Indian men and women, these are
families which have five, six, ten even up to twenty children.
With such a potential for huge population India, in the recent or
even in the remote past, has not fully realized the importance
of controlling the population, nor did our country felt the danger
of such population. The ancient Hindu society was completely
oblivious of the significance of population for the following
reasons:
o There was neither any mechanism to count or record of
old Indian Territory, nor was there any effort to know about
the population.
o There was no homogeneous distribution of population – all
scattered in different groups of agricultural and tribal society,
the elites being divided among different kingdoms and
dynasties without any significant social welfare measures.
o The concept of poverty was virtually unknown in
India. Superstition, too much faith on destiny and God and
lack of concerted efforts kept a huge country under the
blanket of poverty for century after century.
“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked
and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and
uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own
homes to remedy this kind of poverty.” --- Mother Teresa
“Where there is no happiness for all, there cannot be happiness for
any.”
This is a fundamental truth successful nations around the world
have discovered. They have structured their societies in such a
way that though there may be inequalities in incomes and level
of enjoyment of the good things of life, the basics of a modern
life are not denied to anyone.
What are the basics? Answers vary for each country. For India,
these are: education, health care, housing, water, electricity,
cooking fuel, old age support, sanitation and employment did
not see the linkage between a nation’s investments in social
sectors and its prosperity.
As a consequence of attempts made by government, poverty
showed a sharp decline in 1980s. This decline in poverty,
to some extent, is also attributed to agriculture development
of 1970s and 1980s resulting from the Green Revolutions.
However, much more needs to be done, for India is the home
to the largest poor population in the world. Basic necessities
of life such as drinking water, health care facilities, etc. are still
inaccessible to majority of population.
In this regard community participation and awareness
campaign can make a difference. The media and the
NGOs, besides other institutions have crucial role to play.
The machinery involved in poverty alleviation need to be
accountable, sensitised and sincere. New laws have to
be evolved to ensure more accountability. The lack of
transparency and accountability has hampered our economic
development at all levels. A system of incentives and
disincentives can also be of great importance. Thus, the
situation is bound to change and society will be free from
deprivation.
By Aman Agarwal
to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and
mental efficiency. He even fails to meet his basic requirements.
Poverty is in fact a relative concept. It is very difficult to draw a
demarcation line between affluence and poverty.
An estimated 29.8% of Indians live below the
country’s national poverty line in 2010 (see point 2 below). Here
are two graphs showing the evolution of the poverty rate –
percentages of poor Indians
The state of Uttar Pradesh alone has 8% of the world’s
population who live in extreme poverty. However, it’s not
India’s poorest state. With a population of 100 million people,
Bihar is poorest. More than half of children under 3 suffer from
malnutrition. One in three malnourished children is Indian, and
rates of malnutrition are higher in India than in sub-Saharan
Africa. Nearly a third of all newborn deaths occur in India.
Indian soil is fertile, so are Indian men and women, these are
families which have five, six, ten even up to twenty children.
With such a potential for huge population India, in the recent or
even in the remote past, has not fully realized the importance
of controlling the population, nor did our country felt the danger
of such population. The ancient Hindu society was completely
oblivious of the significance of population for the following
reasons:
o There was neither any mechanism to count or record of
old Indian Territory, nor was there any effort to know about
the population.
o There was no homogeneous distribution of population – all
scattered in different groups of agricultural and tribal society,
the elites being divided among different kingdoms and
dynasties without any significant social welfare measures.
o The concept of poverty was virtually unknown in
India. Superstition, too much faith on destiny and God and
lack of concerted efforts kept a huge country under the
blanket of poverty for century after century.
“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked
and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and
uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own
homes to remedy this kind of poverty.” --- Mother Teresa
“Where there is no happiness for all, there cannot be happiness for
any.”
This is a fundamental truth successful nations around the world
have discovered. They have structured their societies in such a
way that though there may be inequalities in incomes and level
of enjoyment of the good things of life, the basics of a modern
life are not denied to anyone.
What are the basics? Answers vary for each country. For India,
these are: education, health care, housing, water, electricity,
cooking fuel, old age support, sanitation and employment did
not see the linkage between a nation’s investments in social
sectors and its prosperity.
As a consequence of attempts made by government, poverty
showed a sharp decline in 1980s. This decline in poverty,
to some extent, is also attributed to agriculture development
of 1970s and 1980s resulting from the Green Revolutions.
However, much more needs to be done, for India is the home
to the largest poor population in the world. Basic necessities
of life such as drinking water, health care facilities, etc. are still
inaccessible to majority of population.
In this regard community participation and awareness
campaign can make a difference. The media and the
NGOs, besides other institutions have crucial role to play.
The machinery involved in poverty alleviation need to be
accountable, sensitised and sincere. New laws have to
be evolved to ensure more accountability. The lack of
transparency and accountability has hampered our economic
development at all levels. A system of incentives and
disincentives can also be of great importance. Thus, the
situation is bound to change and society will be free from
deprivation.
By Aman Agarwal
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