NCERT Revision notes for class 9 Economics Poverty as a challenge

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Poverty

A situation in which a person does not have enough money to fulfill its basic need of food, freshwater, and shelter is called poverty.

It also includes a lack of better education, no access to health facilities, and no permanent work to earn a living.

Poverty line

It is the minimum income level set by the government, which a person needs to fulfill its basic needs of food, fresh water, and shelter. People with income below this line falls under the category of poor.

Poverty line by government

In India, the government has defined the poverty line based on calories consumed by a person living in the rural area and urban area.

The government accepted 2400 calories per person per day requirement in rural areas while 2100 calories per person per day requirement in urban areas.
The government estimated that to fulfill the calorie requirement of a person living in rural area must earn 860 rupees per month and a person living in urban area must earn rupees 1000 per month. Any other person earning below this fixed amount will be considered poor.

Causes of poverty

Several factors are responsible for poverty in India:

In the past, the British colonial government introduced policies that ruined the handicraft and textile industries in India.
The effect of Green revolution was limited to few States such as Punjab, Haryana, and western UP.
Income inequality among people and unequal distribution of land and other resources is also responsible for poverty.
High growth rate in population and fewer job opportunities.

Groups vulnerable to poverty

Some social and economic groups of people are more vulnerable to poverty than other groups.

Social group

People of scheduled caste and Scheduled tribe are highly vulnerable to poverty. According to statistics, 43 out of 100 people of the scheduled tribe were unable to fulfill their basic needs whereas 29 out of 100 people of the scheduled caste were unable to fulfill their basic needs.

Economic group

In economic groups, rural agricultural labor and urban casual labor are more vulnerable to poverty. According to statistics, 34 out of 100 rural agricultural labor was unable to fulfill their basic needs and 34 out of 100 urban casual labors were also unable to fulfill their basic needs.

Inter-state difference in poverty in India

Not all states in India have same level of poverty. Some states have high level of poverty than other states:

According to statistics, Bihar and Orissa were ranked among the poorest states in India. In Bihar, 33.7% of people were living below poverty line whereas in Odisha 32.6 % of people were living below the poverty line. Kerala was experiencing the lowest poverty level in India where only 7.1% of people were living below poverty line.

Global poverty trends

According to World Bank, a person earning less than $1.90 per day falls under the poor category. The following statistics shows that percentage of poor people has declined significantly.

In 1990, 36% people around the world were living below poverty line, which decline, to 10% in 2015.
In southeast Asian countries, poverty has declined due to Rapid economic growth and investment in human resources. In countries like China, the poverty has declined from 88.3% in 1981 to 14.7 % in 2008 to 0.6% in 2019.
In South Asian countries like India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Pakistan, poverty has declined from 34 % in 2005 to 15.2% in 2014.

Steps to tackle poverty

The government took two steps to eliminate poverty in India:

Promotion of economic growth

The economic growth rate of India in 1970 was 3.5 % which increased to 6% during 1980 and 1990.
This higher growth rate has decreased poverty in India.
It also created many job opportunities for people.
It also encouraged people to invest in education of their children that will repay them and will be beneficial for society.

Targeted anti poverty programmes

Several anti-poverty programs were launched by the government, which are as follows:

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

It was launched in 2005 that aims to provide 100 days of wage employment to the poor people of the society. One-third of the job position was reserved for women.

Prime Minister Rozgar Yojana

It was launched in 1993 that aims to create self-employment opportunities for the educated youth living in rural and small towns.

Pradhan Mantri gramodaya Yojana

it was launched in 2000 to provide support to the state government for providing basic facilities such as Primary Health, education, shelter, drinking water, and electricity to the poor people of society.

Rural Employment generation programme

It was launched in 1995 which aims to create self employment opportunity in rural areas and small towns.

Swarna Jayanti gramin swarozgar Yojana

It was launched in 1999 which aims to organize poor families into self-help groups and provide them the facility of bank credit and government subsidy.