UPSC Economics Poverty as a Challenge / एक चुनौती के रूप में गरीबी Short Notes - Poverty in India

Short Notes - Poverty in India

Category : UPSC

Poverty in India

One third of the world's poor live in India.
The number of poor in India is now estimated at 148 million in 2014 as compared to 396 million in 2004-05.
Goa ranks best with least poverty of 5.09% and Chattisgarh has the most poverty with 39.93%.
Poverty is concentrated among agricultural labourers, casual workers, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
According to Economic Survey 2013-14, poverty ratio declines to 21.9 percent.
The survey to measure below poverty line is conducted by National Sample Survey [NSS).
National Sample Survey determines poverty line using the mixed recall period method in which consumer spending for five items such as clothing, durable goods, footwear, education and institutional medical expenses are collected from a 365 days period.

Unemployment in India

The country's overall unemployment rate was estimated to be 15 per cent in 2015-16.
In case of women living in urban areas the unemployment rate was 12.1 per cent, while in rural areas, it was 7.8 percent.
The overall unemployment among women was 10.0 per cent across the country.
Gujarat has the lowest unemployment rate of 1.2 per cent, as per the fourth Annual Employment & Unemployment Survey report for 2013-14, released by Labour Bureau, under Union Ministry
of Labour and Employment.
As per the study, the unemployment rate per 1,000 persons aged more than 15 years was lowest in Gujarat at 12, followed by Karnataka at 18, Maharashtra at 28, UT Chandigarh at 28, Madhya Pradesh at 29 and Telangana at 33.

Different Types of Unemployment in India

Structural Unemployment: This type of unemployment is associated with economic structure of the country, i.e. rapidly growing population, technological change and their immobility fall in rate of capital formation.
Under-employment: Those labourers are under-employed who obtain work but their efficiency and capability are not utilised at their optimum and as a result they contribute in the production upto a limited level.
Disguised Unemployment: If a person does not contribute anything in the production process or in other words, if he can be removed from the work without affecting the productivity adversely, he will be treated as disguisedly unemployed. The marginal productivity of such unemployed person is zero.
Open Unemployment: When the labourers live without any work and they don't find any work to do, they come under the category of open unemployment. Educated and unskilled labourers unemployment are included in open unemployment.

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Schemes for Women and Child Development

Central social welfare board (CSWB).
To implement welfare programs for women and children via NGOs, family counselling, awareness generation etc.
Originally set up by resolution of Government, later became a charitable company.
Falls under Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls launched in 2011.
To provide nutrition for growing adolescent girls by provision of food grains.
All girls will be given a kishori card which will be updated with details of the girl's growth and provision of the food grains.
SABLA implemented by Ministry of Women and Child Development. (not by HRD ministry or social welfare ministry).
SABLA is created by merging earlier two schemes : Nutrition program for adolescent girls + Kishori Shakti Yojana.
Target: girls aged 11-18.
100 grns of foodgrain per day per girl for 300 days in a year.

This is a scheme by Ministry of Women and Child Development launched in 2012.
Made due to rising demand for gender sensitisation among boys after the Delhi gang-rape incident.
It'll give training/moral education to adolescent boys (11-18 age) to respect women.
Official name will be "Rajiv Gandhi scheme for empowerment of adolescent boys."

Policies

National Rural Health Mission

Focus will be post-menopausal problems, osteoporosis and breast and cervical cancer.
Dovetailing of NRHM with IGMSY (Indra Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana) (conditional cash transfer for maternity benefit) and National Food Security Bill (NFSB) will be undertaken.
Training Anganwadi and ASHA workers (Accredeted Social Health Activist) on issues relating to nutrition, counselling, child rights and gender discrimination
Work of ASHAs/AWWs, will be valued and recognised.

Child labour v/s Right to Education (RTE)

RTE = Every child between the ages of 6 and 14 has right to free (and compulsory) elementary education
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986 makes a distinction between hazardous and non-hazardous categories of work for children under 14 years.

Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram

This scheme was launched in 2013.
To provide comprehensive healthcare and improve the quality of life of children focus on 4D.
Defects at birth (cleft lip, down's syndrome. Talipes etc.).
Diseases (dental, heart, asthama etc.)
Deficiencies (Vit.A deficiency = Bitot spot).
Development delays including disability.

ICDS

Integrated Child Development Service started in 1975.
Beneficiary-children below the age of six, lactating mothers, pregnant mothers.
Provides for nutritional and health status, immunization, health checkups, pre-school and non-formal education
Has convergence with reproductive and child health (RCH) program under National Rural Health Mission

Dhanlakshmi

Conditional cash transfer for girl child, launched in 2008, for fulfilling following conditions:

For this scheme, 12th FYP wants conditional transfer of assets (like home via IAY) instead of cash transfer.

Rajiv Gandhi National Creche

Scheme provides for day-care facilities to 0-6 year-old children of working mothers by opening creches and development services
Requirement: combined monthly income of both the parents should not exceed Rs. 12,000 for availing of the facilities.