POVERTY AS A CHALLENGE

PLANNING AHEAD
Who is Poor?
Two Case Studies of Poverty-Rural Case Study; Urban Case Study
Meaning of Poverty
Indicators of Poverty or Poverty as Secn by Social Scientists
Estimates of Poverty in India
Poverty-Ridden Vulnerable Groups
Story of Ramchandran
Interstate Disparities
Global Poverty Scenario
Causes of Poverty in India
Measures for Removal of Poverty in India

Poverty is one of the most important
and formidable challenges that India is
India is considered one of the
facing today.
poorest countries of the world. What does
it imply? And how can we overcome this
problem? In this regard, it will be useful to
understand the meaning of poverty, its
causes and remedial measures.
WHO IS POOR?
It will beinteresting to know that who
the poor people in India are or to which
class they belong. We can see a number of
disabled persons. Similarly in urban sector,
most of the poor people are among the
casual workers, daily wage earmers working
at construction sites, domestic servants,
rickshaw pullers, children working in
canteens and dhabas, beggars with children
in tattus, scheduled and backward caste
people and the people living in jhuggis.
There are families who do not get enough
food to feed their members. We can see half
naked people who do not have enougn
across a number
clothes to wear. We come house and hence
of people who do not have
such
sleep under the open sky. We can see

poor people in a very large number in

our
poor people around us,
if we go to vanavasi
J.J. colonies in country. In fact, every fourth person (roughly
areas, remote villages and
26 crore) in India is poor.
the urban sector. The major chunk of the
areas generally belong
poor people in rural TWOCASE STUDIES
the
to the following principal categories: OF POVERTY
landless labourers, the small and marginal
and casual In order to understand the meaning of
farmers, the agricultural will be useful
the tribals and poor people and poverty it
labourers, the rural artisans,
E - 32
 casc studies onc rural and parents also who live in a remote village
to have two
one urban.
in Jharkhand. His wife Paro, works as a
part time maid in a house in nearby colony
Rural Case Study and manages to earn Rs. 500 a month. His
Nihal Singh lives in a small village near 12 years old son also works as a helper in
Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. He does not a canteen and earns Rs. 300. His 10 years
have any cultivable land. So his family old daughter looks after younger children.
members are forced to work as landless None of the children go to school. Ram
labourers or on big farmer's farms. Since Niwas can manage a meagre meal of dal
hence their
they don't get work regularly, and rice twice a day for the family. But
income is also not regular. Whenever they sometimes it is also not available in sufficient
get work, they are paid Rs. 50 for the whole quantity. The family can hardly arrange two

day's hard work. Sometimes they receive pairs of cloth for each member. New ones
the wages in kind in the form of wheat, or are purchased only when the old clothes
dal or vegetables. Nihal Singh has a family become unwearable. Children move without
of seven members. His father died as a T.B. shoes, it is afor them. They are
luxury
undernourished and do not get milk. If they
patient. Because of poverty he could not
manage proper treatment
for him. His fall ill, they do not get healthcare.
mother is a heart patient but he is unable studies reveal
These two typical case

to arrange medication for her, hence her following main dimensions of poverty:
life is slowly receding away. Nihal Singh lack of
() Poverty refers hunger,
to
cannot always arrange even two square
shelter and proper clothing.
meals for his family members. He lives in
It is situation in which parents are
a Kuchcha house which is situated on the (ii) a
to
outskirts of the village. His mother and wife unable to send their children
school. Thus poverty and illiteracy
chop the fodder and collect firewood in the hand.
fields. Nihal Singh could not go to village go hand in
treatment
primary school for his education. Because (ii) Poor people cannot afford
Hence they
of pressure for earning to sustain family he at the time of illness.
was forced to start earning when he was have poor health.

Just 10 years old. He can purchase new (iv) Malnutrition especially in the case

clothes once in a few years. He cannot of children is found among

poor
drean to purchase things like soap, oil,
people.
biscuits, sweets, radio, watch etc. These have large size
(v) Poor people generally
items are treated as a luxury for the
of family.
family. underemployment
(vi) Unemployment or
Urban Case Study is also found in poor
sections, poor
at a
Ram Niwas lives in J.J colony of Delhi. people do not get regular job
fairly minimum level.
He is a young man of 32. He works as
daily-wage labourer in a flour-mill, i.e., he child labour.
(vii) Poverty generates water
works as casual labourer. Whenever he gets do not get
clean
employment, he normally earns around Rs. (vii) Poor people
and sanitation facilities.
1500 a month. In his family of 6 members, live with a
sense

he has his wife and four children In short, poor people ill-treated in
aged They are
between 12 years to six months. His earning of helplessness.
offices, hospitals, railway
farms, factories,
1S not adequate to sustain his family. markets etc. i.e., at
almost every
He has to send money home to his old stations,

E 33
 place. In this situation who would like to
remain poor? Obviously, nobody would like
to be poor or live in poverty.
MEANING OFPOVERTY
It is casy to identify the poor and the
poverty but it is very difficult to define it.
However, efforts have been made to define
poverty. Poverty may be defined as a
situation in which a person is unable to
secure even his basic requirements. These
requirements include minimum human
needs in respect of food, clothing, housing,
education and health. Poverty is thus defined
as a lack of income to acquire minimum
necessities of life.
INDICATORS OF POVERTY
OR
POVERTY AS SEEN BY
SOCIALSCIENTISTs
Poverty has many dimensions: Hence
social scientists look at it through a variety
of indicators. The most prominent indicator
of poverty is the low level of income and
consumption. But now other social indicators
are also used to indicate poverty. They are:
illiteracy level, lack of general resistance
due to malnutrition, lack ofjob opportunities,
lack of safe drinking water, sanitation and
healthcare facilities etc.
Now-a-days two new indicators-social
exclusion and vulnerability have also
become very common in the analysis of
poverty.
Social exclusion The concept of
(a) :
social exclusion states that poverty must be
seen in terms of the poor have to live only
in poor surroundings with other p0or people.
They are in a way excluded from enjoying
social equality of better-off people in better
surroundings. Thus poor people's locality
is separated and excluded from mixing with
better-off people's locality. In this process
denied or excluded from
poor people are
facilities, benefits and opportunities that
E-34
better-off people enjoy. For instance, the
people of certain castes (mainly of scheduled
castes) are excluded from such facilities.
Social exclusion can be both a cause as well
as a conscquence of poverty.
(b) Vulnerability: Vulnerability refers
to a situation in which certain communities
(say, backward castes) or individuals (such
as a widow or a handicapped person) have
greater possibility to remain poor in the
coming ycars. Vulnerable Communities do
not easily find an alternative living in terms
of assets, education, health and job
opportunities. These communities also face
greater risks at the time of natural calamities
(such as earthquakes, floods, tsunami,
terrorism etc.). In short, vulnerability
describes the greater probability of poor
being more adversely affected than other
people in bad times.
Poverty Line
How do we estimate the number of poor
people and poverty in the country? The most
comprehensive method to measure poverty
is based on the income or consumption
levels. A person is regarded poor if his
income or consumption level is so low that
he cannot fulfil even his basic minimum
needs. This refers to the problem of absolute
poverty. What is necessary to obtain basic
needs varies from time to time and country
to country. Therefore, the poverty line may
also vary with time and place. It depends
upon what a particular society accepts as a
reasonable level of minimum basic needs
for its people. For example, in USA, it
would not be surprising if a family does
not have a car may be dubbed as poor. But
in India, owning of a car is still considered
a luxury. Here poverty manifests itself in
its starkest form.
The poverty is estimated on the basis
of poverty-line. In India, the concept of
poverty-line is based on calorie-intake
What is calorie? When we eat some food,
is
energy. This energy
it gives us some
 of calorics. Thus, a Thus if a rural family
measured in terms
for the
having 5 members
measurement earns less than Rs. 1640
calorie is a unit of per month, it is
value of food.
Calorie requirements regarded below poverty-line family; and if
energy
are different for different categories of it earns more than Rs. 1640 per month,it
the basis of age, sex is above poverty-line family. On the other
other
people. It differs
on
o On
work that a person does. It hand, the poverty-line for an urban family
and the type of
minimum of Smembers will be equal to Rs. 2270
is presumed that in India the
of an average man is (454x 5). Hence, if an urban family having
caloric-requirement
calories per day in the rural 5 members earns less than Rs. 2270 per
to have 2400
calories per day in the urban month, it is regarded below poverty-line
sector and 2100

sector. From this

we learn that the average family and if it earns more than Rs. 2270
caloric-requirement in
the rural sector is per month, it is above poverty-line family.
urban sector. Why is it In India, NSSO (National Sample Survey
higher than in the Organisation) conducts surveys in order to
the simple reason that
so? It is because of
in hard estimate poverty-line. These surveys are
rural people are generally engaged
more conducted every five years. For international
physicallabour. Hence, they require
than the urban people. comparisons, the World Bank has prescribed
energy or calories a uniform standard for
the poverty-line,
The peoplewhose income is so low that which is minimum expenditure of $ 1 per
they are unable topurchase the desired
below person per day.
calories are regarded as the people
the povertyline. The monetary expenditure ESTIMATES OF POVERTY
necded for meeting these calorie
requirements
etc. is revised
ININDIA
in terms of foodgrains
consideration the in 1999-2000 that
estimated
periodically taking into It was
lived
our population
rise in prices. nearly 26per cent of
total number of
the below poverty-line. The
On the basis of these calculations, 1999-2000
1999-2000 was estimated at persons
below poverty-line in
poverty line in 19.3 crore poor
rural areas 26 crore. Among them,
Rs. 328 per capita per month for
was
a r e a s and 6.7
crore
were in rural
and Rs. 454 per capita per month for
urban people i areas. The estimates of
in urban
areas. Here we find an interesting were
during
rural and urban
areas

contradiction. We are aware that the calorie poverty for the

are
1999-2000 given in
sector is higher 1973-74 and
requirement for the rural
the table on next page.
compared to the urban sector. But percentage
informs us that the
areas is The table
amount of poverty-line for rural
has
below poverty-line
How of population in
less than the amount for urban areas. nearly 55 per
cent
from
can we explain it? or how
does it happen? declined
2004. The
total
cent in
that the 1973 to 27.5 per
It is because of the reason also declined
has
in rural number of poor people the s a m e
consumption goods cheaper
are
to 30 c r o r e during

urban Hence, the amount from 32 c r o r e in population.

areas than in
of rapid rise
areas.

of consumption expenditure of poverty-line period in spite If

achievement.

indeed a
spectacular
urban below poverty
is less in rural areas than it is so in It is
continues, people
the trend 20 per
less than
areas. come
down to the
Moreover,
line may
Now we can know whether a particular next few years.
both in
family is living below poverty line or above cent in the has
declined

incidence
of poverty have the
members. If it Yet we
it. Suppose a family has 5 rural and
urban
areas.
whole of
line will be people in
is a rural family, its poverty number of poor
largest
to Rs. 1640 (328
x
5) per month.
equal
F-35
 Population below Poverty Line
1973 2004
Below Poverty-line persons Below poverty-line persons
Groups
(in crores) (in percentage) (in crores) (in percentage)
56.4 22.1 28.3
Rural 26.1
Urban 6.0 49.0 8.0 25.7
54.9 30.1 27.5
Combined 32.1
Source: Economic Survey 2008-09.

vulnerable social groups

the world. Hence we can well imagine the groups. The most
castes and
of poverty in our to poverty are scheduled
gravity of the problem scheduled tribes. Among the economic
country. labour
categories, rural agricultural
POVERTY-RIDDEN households and the urban casual labour
VULNERABLE GROUPS households are the most vulnerable groups.
ratio these various vulnerable
All social groups and economic Poverty among
given below in the table and
groups is
categories in India are not equally poverty
ridden. Some of them are more
vulnerable diagram.
Vulnerable Groups
Poverty Ratio (%) Among
Urban Rural Scheduled
Scheduled
Groups Casual Agricultural Castes
Tribes
Labourers
Labourers
47 43
51 50
Poverty Ratio (%)

60
51 50
47
50 43

40-

30

20

10
Scheduled

0 Urban Casual Rural

Scheduled Castes
Labourers Agricultural
Tribes Labourers

Vulnerable Groups

E - 36
 The table informs us that 51 percentof
scheduled tribe people are below the poverty
line, it means they are unable to meet their
basic needs. Similarity. 50 per cent of urban
casual workers, 47 percent of landless
agricultural labourers and 43 percent of
scheduled caste people are also below
poverty-line. Since overall average poverty
ratio in India is just 26 per cent, the above-
mentioned groups having 43 to 51 poverty
ratios are undoubtedly vulnerable groups.
If landless casual labourers belong to either
scheduled castes or scheduled tribes they
will have to bear double disadvantage.
Besides this, we also find inequality of
incomes within the family in India. In poor
families, some members suffer more than
others. Women, aged people and female
infants are generally denied equal access to
resources available to the family. Therefore
women, old people and girl child are the
poorest of the poor among the Indian
families.
STORY OF RAMCHANDRAN
Ramchandran lives in a small village in
Tamil Nadu. This village has 100 families.
Ramchandran is cobbler by caste. He does
not have agricultural land to cultivate.
Hence he works as an agricultural labourer
on other's farms. He
gets Rs. 50 per day
as wages. But he does not get employment
for whole of the year. He hardly gets job
only 5 to 6 months in a year. His wife
Chandrakala also goes for work wherever
she gets opportunity. But she is paid only
Rs. 30 per day for the same work. There
are seven members in the family.
Ramchandaran's mother is 70 years old and
remains il1. But he is unable to make
arrangement for her treatment.
Kamchandran has four children, two
sonsand two daughters. None of the children
goes to school because he cannot afford to
purchase books and other things needed for
children's education. It is very dificult for
E-37
him to nmeet even the basic
of his family with hisrequirements
earnings.
Ramchandran's eldest daughter is 20 years
old. He is anxious about her marriage but
cannot find a suitable groom due to lack of
money.
INTERSTATE DISPARITIES
One of the important dimensions of
poverty is that the incidence of poverty in
India varies from state to state and region
to region. In 1999-2000, 20 states and Union
Territories had poverty ratios which were
less than the national average. On the other
hand, Orissa and Bihar are the poorest states
in the country with poverty ratios of 47 and
43 per cent respectively. Apart from it,
poverty is still a serious problem for Assam,
Tripura and Uttar Pradesh.
There has been a significant decline in
poverty in Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir,
Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and
West Bengal. Kerala got success by
emphasising more on human resource
development. In West Bengal, land reform
measures have helped in reducing poverty.
In Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu efficient
distribution of foodgrains have
public
contributed in this success. Punjab and
Haryana have as usual succeeded in reducing
poverty through high agricultural growth
rates.
GLOBAL POVERTY SCENARI0
We have already said that for developing
countries World Bank has prescribed the
poverty-line as $ per day. On this criteria,
poverty ratio in developing countries has
come down from 28 per cent in 1990 to 21
Here also we find regional
per cent in 2001.
is very
differences. Decline in poverty
South-east Asian
substantial in China and
as a result of
countries. It has happened
and heavy investment
rapid economic growth 1
The number
in human resource development.
of poor people in China has declined from low. And because of low production level
606 million in 1981 to 212 million in 2001. it becomes all the more difficult to relieve
In South Asian countries (like India, poverty in future. Poverty and low
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, productivity thus form a vicious circle in
Bhutan), the poverty has not declined much. the economy.
The number of poor persons has come down
marginally from 475 million in 1981 to just CAUSES OFPOVERTY IN INDIA
428 million in 2001. In Sub-Saharan African
countries the poverty ratio in fact rose from Why People are Poor?
41 per cent in 1981 to 46 per cent in 2001. There are a number of reasons
In Latin American countries, the poverty responsible for the poverty in India.
ratio remained almost stable. Poverty in
former socialist countries like Russia has Prominent among them are as under
1. Colonial Rule : Because of British
also resurfaced.
rulers' exploitative policy, India was turned
Poverty comparisons of some of the into a poor and backward economy. Colonial
developing countries is given in the table rulers as a matter of deliberate policy, were
below. out to destroy India's handicraft industries.
Consequently, a large number of weavers
Poverty position of Some Countries
and other craftsmen became
Country % of Population
unemployed
and poor. Even after fifty years of
below $ 1 per day
planning
we have failed to sufficiently
improve the
1. Nigeria 70.8 situation in the handicrafts sector. Besides
this British rulers
2. Bangladesh 36.0 discouraged the
3. India development of modern industries in
35.03
India.
4. Pakistan 17.0
2. Low Growth Rate
5. China 16.6 Growth rate in
India remained continuously low until the
6. Brazil 8.2 1980s. It was mainly because of under
7. Indonesia 7.5 utilisation of natural resources, low level
8. Sri Lanka 5.6 of technology and
backwardness in
Source World Development Report, 2001. agricultural sector. This resulted in less job
Here in this table, opportunities and low level of income.
poverty ratio
in India is shown higher than the figure 3.Widespread Unemployment: AfterT
national 1960s with the
estimates because of different expansion of irrigation
definition.
poverty line facilities and the Green Revolution,
many
job opportunities were created in the
Adverse Impacts of PovertyY agricultural sector. But the effects remained
limited to some parts of the
When the large number of people in a country.
Industries have also provided some
country are entangled in poverty, it adversely but these were not jobs,
affects the economy. Denial of minimum the job seekers. The
adequate to absorb all

consumption needs causes human misery labour force of the

It reduces the health and efficiency of the
county remained idle and unutilised because
of unemployment.
people. Because of low efficiency the level of income and
Consequently, the level
of production and productivity also becomes down.
purchasing power went
E 38
 : On the very low. Consequently, there was not much
4. Rapid rise in Population
one hand, the size of India's population is reduction in poverty. Since the eighties,
it is increasing at a India's growth rate fast rate.
rapid
on the other,
big andrate. Consequently, the level of per
moved at a
Growth rate jumped from a mere 3.5 per
cent in the 1970s, to about 6 per cent in
capita income and consumption is not
increasing much.
1980s and 1990s. The increase in growth
rate has undoubtedly helped in the reduction
Thus, low rate of growth coupled with
rate make the
of poverty. Therefore, it is becoming clear
high population growth that economic growth is the most important
income very low.
growth rate of per capita asure for poverty eradication. It provides
We confronted failure at both the
fronts:
and the resources needed to invest in human
promotion of economic growth resource development like education, health
the
population control. It has perpetuated etc. It creates more resources and has the
low
cycle of poverty in the country. Thus,
rate of income and rapid rise in
potential of generating more employment
growth opportunities. It is presumed that it would
are the two important reasons
population automatically increase the levels of income
of poverty in India.
of the poor. But it has not worked on desired
5. Inequalities Inequalities in the lines. Hence now, we have to adopt such
distribution
large extent responsible
of wealth and
for poverty
income in
areIndia.
to a a pattern of growth which involves the poor

people in its production process.

We have failed in implementation of land
2. Special Poverty Alleviation
reforms.Consequently, we could not make the
Programmes : It was realised that
much headway in the redistribution of assets levels of living
gradual improvement in the
in the rural areas.
of the poor as a result of economic
6. Other Reasons : Besides above was not enough. Hence,
direct
development
stated reasons, there are other reasons which alleviation
intervention through poverty
aggravate the problem of poverty in our programmes became necessary. In view of

country. They are backward social

: launched several special
this, government
institutions, extravagancies in social and employment programmes for poverty
religious ceremonies, indebtedness of poor The aims of
removal from time to time.
increase in
agriculturists, illiteracy, corruption and these programmes are
for the poor,
ineficiency in the administration etc. employment opportunities
and asset
infrastructure development,
MEASURES FOR REMOVAL OF creation for the poor
families. The important
POVERTY ININDIA poverty alleviation
programmes
which
described
are

are
If we wish that the average man of the presently in operation
country should live with honour and dignity, below.
Rural Employment
we must expedite our efforts for the removal (i) National
Rural
Seheme: National
of poverty from the country. The present Guarantee
Guarantee Act was passed in
anti-poverty strategy of the government is Employment this Act the
According to
based broadly on two planks: (1) promotion September 2005. Guarantee
Employment
of economic growth; and (2) special poverty National Rural
launched in February
was
alleviation programmes Scheme (NREGS) 100 days of
Scheme guarantees
1. Promotion of Economic Growth: 2006. The to every
employment
in a year
In the first thirty years after planning, the wage within five
districts. Later
household in 200
growth rate in per capita income remained
years, the scheme will cover the whole
country. One-third of the proposed jobs
would be reserved for women. For the
implementation of the
scheme, the Central
Government will establish National
Employment Gquarantee Funds and State
Government will also establish State
Employment Guarantee Funds.
(i)Rural Employment Generation
Programme REGPwas launched in 1995.
The aim of the programme is to create self-
employment opportunities in rural areas and
towns. The target for the programme under
the tenth plan is to create 25 lakh new
jobs.
(ii) Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar
Yojna (SGSY) : SGSY was launched on
April 1, 1999. The main objectiveofSGSY
is to bring the existing poor families above
the poverty line. It is conceived as a holistic
programme of micro enterprises. It covers
all aspects of self-employment. Organisation
of rural poor into self-help groups is an
important activity of this programme. This
scheme is being implemented on a cost
sharing ratio of 75 : 25 between the Centre
and the States.
(iv)Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya
Yojana (PMGY): It was introduced in
2001 with the objective of
improving the
quality of life of people in the rural areas.
The scheme focuses on
village level
development in five critical areas: health,
primary education, drinking water, housing
and rural roads.
(v)Swarnajayanti Shahari Rozgar
Yojana (S.JSRY) : It was launched on
December 1997. It includes two main
schemes:(a)The Urban Self Employment
Programme, (b) The Urban Employment
Programme.
Besides these programmes, Antyodaya
Anna Yojana was launched in Dec. 2001.
Under this scheme foodgrains are made
available to the poorest families at a
subsidised rate.
Thus, a number of efforts have been
made in India in the direction of poverty
alleviation, but they have not been able to
produce the desired results. Therefore, there
is every need to make more effective efforts
in this direction, in the coming future.
The Challenge Ahead
A number of efforts have been made in
India in the direction of poverty alleviation.
As result of these efforts poverty has also
a
declined in India. But desired results could
not have been achieved and poverty
reduction still remains India's most
compelling challenge. Wide disparities are
found between rural and urban areas and
among different states. Certain social and
economic groups suffer more.
Therefore,
there is every need to make more effective
efforts for better progress in the direction
of poverty reduction in the coming future.
It can be possible only when efforts are
intensified in the direction of higher
economic growth, giving more stress on
universalisation of education, control on
population growth, empowerment of women
and weaker sections of the society.
The present official definition of poverty
indicates only a limited part of
what poverty
really means to people. It refers to minimum
subsistence level' based on income rather
than 'reasonable level of living'. Many
a
scholars have suggested that to get a
complete idea of
1 its
poverty, we must enlarge
canvas. For this they have developed a
new concept of human poverty: It is possible
that people may earn to be able to feed
themselves. But that does not mean that
they are free from poverty. If opportunities
are not available for
living a tolerable life,
it is undoubtedly a situation of
poverty.
Hence apart from income and consumption
E-40
level, we must also know whether the people
have access to education, shelter and health
care facilities? Do they have job security?
Are they free from caste, class and gender
discrimination? Do they participatein
decision making process? Does the practice
of child labour still exist in their families?
Do they have access to safe drinking water
and sanitation facilities? All these enquiries
will lead us to the broader concept of human
poverty. Human poverty can thus be defined
as a denial of opportunities for living a
tolerable life. The definition of poverty also
changes with development. Hence
eradication of poverty always remains a
moving target. It is hoped that we will be
able toprovide minimum income and
Consumption level to our people by the
end of the next decade. But it is not
adequate. The bigger challenges before us
are to
provide healthcare, education and job
security for all, access to safe
drinking water and sanitation facilities, and
achieving gender equality and dignity for
the poor. If we have to provide
reasonably decent living to our people we
must answer all these challenges in the
coming years.

EXERCISES

A. Long Answer Questions

1. Describe how the poverty-line is estimated in India?
2. Describe poverty trends in India since 1973.
Or
Has the poverty declined in India during the period of 1973-74 to 1999-2000?

3. Discuss major reasons of poverty in India.

4. Describe the situation of social and economic groups which are most vulnerable to poOv-

erty in India.
5. Describe global poverty trends
6. Describe current government strategy of poverty alleviation.
1. Describe important poverty alleviation programmes undertaken by the governmentin

India.
adopted for the removal
two broad measures
8. Give two important reasons of poverty and
of poverty.
9. How is poverty analysed on the basis of social exclusion and vulnerability?

B. Short Answer Questions

1. Who are the poor people in India?
2. What are the main dimensions of poverty in India?

3. What is meant by poverty?

4. What is social exclusion? How does it indicate poverty?
5. How does vulnerability indicate poverty? in
in terms of rupees
. How is poverty-line defined in India? And what
is the poverty-line
1999-2000?
State whether it is below
Suppose a family offive members earns Rs. 1800 per month.
if (a) it is rural family,
(b) it is urban family.
the poverty-line or above the poverty-line

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 8. Has the poverty declined in India during the period 1973-74 to 1999-2000?
9. Mention the major poverty-ridden vulnerable social and economic groups in India.
10. Describe interstate disparities in regard to poverty in India.
11. Mention the main reasons of decline in poverty in some of the major states in India.

12. Briefly mention the adverse impacts of poverty.

13. Explain briefly three important causes of poverty in India.
14. To what extent promotion of economic growth has eradicated poverty in India?
15. Describe the role of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and Scheme in the
eradication of poverty in India.
alleviation programmes undertaken by the
16. Briefly describe two major special poverty
Govt. of India.
17. What do you understand by the concept of human poverty?

18. Who are the poorest of the poor?

19. Why is calorie requirement in rural higher than in the urban sector?
sector

sector is higher, yet the amount of poverty-

20. Though the calorie requirement for the rural
sector. Explain this contradiction.
line for rural sector is less than the amount of urban
21. Fill in the blanks.
countries of the world.
(a) India is considered one of the ..
in unable to secure his
(6) Poverty is a situation in which a person
. . .

of is the ...
(c) The most prominent indicator poverty
basis of..
(d) Poverty is estimated on the
Answers
(b) basic requirements
(a) poorest
low level of income and consumption () poverty-line.
(c)
C. Very Short Answer Questions
1. Define poverty.
which are now used by social scientists to analyse poverty.
2. Give two indicators

3. Who is regarded a poor person?

4. What is calorie?
sec-
man in rural sector and urban
calorie requirement of an average
5. What is minimum
tor? sector in 1999-
sector and urban
the poverty-line in terms of upees in rural
6. What is
2000?
in 1999-2000?
of below poverty-line persons
7. What is the estimate
to poverty.
vulnerable social group in regard
8. Mention one most
to poverty.
vulnerable economic group in regard
9. Mention one most
families in India?
10. Who suffer more in poor
states of India.
11. Name the two poorest
reasons of poverty
in India.
12. Mention two impotant of India.
alleviation programmes
two important special poverty
13. Name
E-42
Answers
1. Poverty may be defined as a situation in which a person is unable to secure even his
basic requirements.
2. Social exclusion; and vulnerability.
3. A person is regarded poor if his income or consumption level is so low that he can not
fulfil even his basic minimum needs.
4. A calorie is a unit of measurement for the energy value of food.
5. For rural sector, 2400 calories per day, and for urban sector 2100 calories per day.
6. Rs. 328 per capita per month in the rural sector and Rs. 454 per capita per month in the
urban sector.
7. 26 per cent or 26 crore people.
8. Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe.
9. Rural agricultural labour households.
10. In poor families women, aged people and female infants suffer the most.
11. Orissa and Bihar are the poorest states of India.
12. Low growth rate and rapid rise in population.
13. National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme; Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar
Yojana.
D. Multiple Choice questions (MCQ): Tick (/) the correct answer.

1. The number of poor people in India is:

(a) 36 crore (b) 22 crore

(c) 30 crore (d) 50 crore

2. Two new important indicators of poverty are:

(a) social exclusion and vulnerability (b) inequality and unemployment

()poor housing facility and poor sanitation (d) none of the above
3. The most important indicator of poverty is:
(a) the poor health
6) the low level of income and consumption
(c) the low level of life expectancy
(d) all the above
4. Poverty is defined as a situation in which a person:
(a) is unable to secure his basic requirements.
(b) is able to secure his basic requirements
(c) can afford to have comforts of life.
(d)can lead a decent life.
5. In India, the concept of poverty-line is based on:
(a) income level (b) consumption level

(c) employment level (d) calorie-intake

6. The minimum calorie-requirement of an average man in the rural sector is:

(a) 2100 calories (b) 2400 calories

(c) 3200 calories (d) 1800 calories

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 7. The minimum calorie-requirement of an average man in the urban sector is
(a) 2400 calories (b) 2200 calories
() 2100 calories (d) 2000 calories
8. A uniform standard for poverty-line preseribed by the World Bank is minimum expendi.
ture of
(a) $1 per person per day (b) $ 1.5 per person per day
(c)$2 per person per day ()$ 3 per person per day
9. During 1973 2004 the number of poor in India had:
people
(a) declined (b) increased
(c) remained static (d) fluctuated
10. The most vulnerable social groups to poverty are:
(a) scheduled castes (b) scheduled tribe
(c) a andb both (d) none of the above
11. The most vulnerable economic categories are:
(a) rural agricultural labour households

6)urban organised labour households

(c) urban casual labour households
(rural atisan households
12. The poorest states in India are:
(a) U.P. and Bihar (6) Kerala and Tamil Nadu
(c) Orissa and Bihar (d) Assam and Tripura
13. The National Rural Employment Guartantee Scheme was launched in:
(a) 2007 (b) 2005

(c) 2008 (d) 2006

14. The main objective of Swanajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojna is:

(a) to give employment to at least one person in the family
(b) to bring the existing poor families above the poverty-line
(c) to raise the level of income of the poor people in the rural sector
(d) to give financial assistance to the self-employed persons.
Answer 9. ()
4. (a) 5. (d) 6. (b) 7. (c) 8. (a)
1. (c) 2. (a) 3. (b)
11. (a and c) 12. (c) 13. () 14. (b)
10. (c)
'olumn B:
. Match Column A with
below Sl a day
1. Social vulnerable group (a) Population with income
in a year
2. Economic vulnerable group (6) 100 days of wage employument
to every household

(c) Schedule caste and schedule tribe

3. International Poverty line education, rural
Guarantee (d) Primary wealth, primary
4. Natural Rural Employment
shelter
Scheme labour and urban casual
(e) Rural agriculture
5. Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojna
labour

Answers
2. (e) 3. (a) 4. (b) . (d)
1. (c)
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F. Value Based Question
15. Observe some ofthe poor families around you and try to find the following:
(a) Who are earning members in the family?
(b) What is the condition of the old people in the family?
(c) Are all the children, boys and girls, attending schools?

ASSIGNMENTS/PROJECT WORK

1. Visit a village and study the life and living of a poor man.
2. Go to a J.J. Colony in a city. Do the case study of a man living in it and describe the

major dimensions of poverty on the basis of this study.

rural and urban sector, discuss the
3. On the basis of your case studies of poverty in the
following issues related to poverty
(a) Landlessness,
(6) Unemployment,
(c) Illiteracy,
(ad) Lack of health facilities,
(e) Size of family, and
Child labour.
minimum level of consumption
for the
tell what should be the
4. Visit a nearby locality and
people living in this locality? social
and note-down the most vulnerable
in your city
5. Visit a nearby village or locality
and economic groups to poverty
to find the following
families around you and try
6. Observe some of the poor
to?
economic group do they belong
(a) Which social or
the earning members in the
family?
(6) Who are Is it sufficient to support
the family?
of the family?
(C) What is the total earning in the family?
of w o m a n and old people
condition
(a) What is the
schools?
(e) Are all the children attending
safe drinking water?
) Do they have access to children during
illness?
treatment for their
medical
8) Can they afford