#High population growth rate
#Regional inequalities
#Protectionist policies pursued till 1991 that prevented high foreign investment
Causes of Poverty:
There are definitely a number of causes that might probably lead to poverty. These causes are usually looked at, from various points of view. Looking at an Economists point of view, it so turns out that, low per capita income, unemployment could be the primary reasons for poverty.
On a social perspective, lack of healthy habits, unclean habits, health hazards, absence of family planning schemes could lead to poverty. Whatever the reasons are, the net result ultimately is that, it affects the society as a whole and in a strict sense, it is not a question of an individual's survival, but is one of the society's healthy existence.
Unplanned population is one main reason of poverty. Education, according to some could lead to alleviation of this problem. But unless the" more- hands- to- feed- a- mouth" situation is evacuated, there will still exist the demon called poverty. Education, coupled with a little positive attitude and a peaceful environ could do wonders to not only to alleviate, but even to eradicate it.
Consequences Of Living Below Poverty Line:„
« Poor health „
« Nil education„
« Low standard of living„
« Lack of awareness about basic necessities„
« Higher level of frustration„
« Mood swings„
« Want to achieve the goal by hook or crook„
« Misconception about principles of living„
« Unhealthy stress levels.
Effect Of Poverty:
In The Development Of A Child:
It is a well known fact that the attitude of a child and the way it behaves, is determined during a child's formative years. It is common sight to find children facing poverty during the primitive years are more prone to violent behavior. Notwithstanding all the trauma faced by them during their childhood, it is but more likely that they would have seen only the harsh phase of life. A common result- children end up with an attitude of procuring everything not caring about its means but only its ends.
No body except the conditions of the child's up bringing could be blamed. When being confronted with worse situations and people treating them as an out caste when subjected to poverty, only provokes them and it gets hardened day by day.
Causes For ProvocationPeer Pressure:
It is very common to see children of poor families being left astray to play with any random person who is willing to do so with it. But the parents seldom understand that the child can absorb vehemently anything that it is exposed to in its initial years.
If, by such association, the kid is exposed to a comparatively rich background, it is but natural that the associate is bound to tempt him to enjoy such luxuries. The irony is that the kid seems to understand what its financial position is, but at the same time, it is not able to rest itself in such low profile area. This conflict, the inability and the difference between its reality and its fancy creates turmoil in the mind of the child.
Single Mothers:
India is supposedly ranked best in relation to its values and customs. But one more aspect of westernization that indirectly encourages poverty is single motherhood. Lack of trust and escapist and care free attitude of the name sake fathers contribute to the growth of poverty. The mothers, unable to bring up the child with dignity, thanks to the set up of the society towards women, and the child exposed to taunts of his friends is sufficient to rake up violent attitude in the child s mind.
While the findings show that the effects of low income at an early age on antisocial behaviour--conduct such as bullying, being cruel, breaking things, cheating or telling lies--persist as kids get older, depression seems to have the opposite effect.
The effects of starting off in a low-income household on child depression lessen as time goes on, regardless of later income levels. The research is published in the current issue of the "Journal of Health and Social Behavior."
Taunting In School:
The most common misinterpretation that could probably happen is that one primary cause of poverty could be increase in the number of school drop outs. The other way of looking at it is that, school drop out is caused primarily because of poverty. The present generation of children is that they cannot appreciate anything if the other person is not from their strata of the society.
It so happens many a times that children from lower rungs of the society, when made to mingle with children from a normal back ground, it is very likely that these kids are treated as an outcaste.
Long Term Deprivation:
Children, when constantly exposed to insults as to their status or extravaganza, it does have some negative effect on its psychology which cannot be denied. When the child starts to absorb the fact that, it iis indeed deprived of all the vagaries of a peer, it turns violent at the injustice meted out to it .
This is but natural. But there should be something done to evolve the child as a cultured person and wake it up to the reality of life. It is indeed a Herculean task, but considering the quantum of violence in India, which is an indirect result of the subject we are talking about, it is essential and it should be brought in as an integral part of the social policy of the country.
Karelis, Professor of George Washington University has a radical argument to make. While a person with a single bee sting tries to get it treated, one with multiple stings can do nothing about it. It is because if one sting is treated, the other stings till throb. Similarly, in utmost poverty, people just reconcile to their destiny
Low Income Of The Household:
Low income of the household can surely be a determining factor. It is but natural that children get vexed with their parents' incapacity to provide them with their bare minimum necessities. It is however, surprising, it is them that the anti social elements target and they become easy victims of the anti social pieces of the society.
Children in low-income families start off with higher levels of antisocial behaviour than children from more advantaged households. And if the home remains poor as the children grow up, antisocial behaviour becomes much worse over time compared to children living in households that are never poor or later move out of poverty, says new University of Alberta research.
While the findings show that the effects of low income at an early age on antisocial behaviour--conduct such as bullying, being cruel, breaking things, cheating or telling lies--persist as kids get older, depression seems to have the opposite effect. The effects of starting off in a low-income household on child depression lessen as time goes on, regardless of later income levels. The research is published in the current issue of the "Journal of Health and Social Behavior."
As development experts learn more about the importance of the first three years of life, there is growing recognition that investments in early education, maternal-child attachment and nurturance, and more creative nutrition initiatives are critical to help break the cycle of poverty in the slightest forms of food insecurity can affect a young child’s development and learning potential
Effects:# Long Term Poverty Continues:
The provocation leads to a very much undesired result. Though there might be anecdotes to change the attitude of people and that, there are two ways of looking at life, it is only next to difficult. There is a school of thought which says, the positive outlook of life lies in facing the negatives of life, yet tuning our mind towards the positive ones and thereby not letting it to continue to happen. But, in reality, how long and how far it is possible is a question of circumstances.
It is only less likely that children who have been exposed to nothing more than brutal attacks of poverty, to have a positive approach to life and it is highly fair on their part to take to succumb to their position, which obviously results only in continued poverty on a much larger scale.
There is a new reason to feel ashamed about America’s failure to fight poverty. Neuroscientists have recently discovered that children who grow up in poor families with a low social status are prone to experiencing unhealthy stress levels, which in turn may impair their neural development.
This effects both language development and memory, and may predispose these children to lifelong poverty.There was short-term success in fighting poverty during the 1960s under the leadership of Linden B. Johnson, who declared a “war on poverty.” Poverty rates fell from 23 percent in 1963 to 14 percent by 1969. This was the end of the progress, however. In 2006, over 17 percent of America’s children lived below the poverty line. This is a sharp increase from the numbers from the 1960s.
# End Becomes Important Than The Means:
Provocation, taunting, and vexation in life can, by itself bring in a vigor in a child's life and that happens to be the turning point in life. But when that happens due to monetary factor, it can definitely create negative traits. The sole aim of such children would only be to achieve financial success, come what may. The ends become more important to them than the means. IT results in increase in the anti social elements of the nation.
It can, if carefully analysed, be observed that (notwithstanding no one cares about the psychological back drop of a criminal –an anti social element), a bad childhood strikes at the root of all problems especially such criminal streak running in a persons attitude. It cannot for sure, happen overnight. Unless it has been deeply embedded within the very insight of the person, it is very rare to find a criminal tinge in a child whose up bringing has been normal like any other child.
# More Prone To Violence:Child is the father of man. He merely reflects what he has been accorded. When the teacher at school uses corporal punishment on him for small offences, that is more common these days, he reciprocates the same. The child, during his adult days, if not given something he is duly entitled, all that he can actually think of was how he was flogged by the teacher and was made to do something, and it is religiously followed by the child. It kindles violence when he is not given his due. The attitude of might is right automatically gets impressed on him.
# Power And Status Monger:The immediate attitude of a child constantly exposed to long term poverty would be that having observed how life is, he is bound to think that he needs to be in good power and status to command the respect of the society that has insulted him so long and it naturally requires to achieve it in a short span of time, honest means is not convenient.
This results in a more irritable view of resorting to crooked means to achieve the status and power so longingly desired for.The basic structure of the society is broken up due to such unruly elements. Goonda raj can sustain only because of such meek individuals who depend more on their brawns than on their brains.
# Poor Learning And Comprehensive SkillsIt is very common to see that the persons from financially challenged backgrounds find it hard to learn with the same vigor as that of children from effluent background. They find it hard to concentrate because of their social irritability. Things preoccupy them and prevent their mind from concentrating on any innovative stuff. It actually does not serve any purpose because any step taken to be merely on paper without being implementation.
Academic and behavioral problems can be indicators of impending failure. Among such behaviors are: delay in language development, delay in reading development, aggression, violence, social withdrawal, substance abuse, irregular attendance, and depression. Teachers may have difficulty reaching a student’s parent or guardian.
They may also find the student does not complete assignments, does not study for tests, or does not come to school prepared to learn because of poverty related circumstances in the home environment. These children may be unable to concentrate or focus. They may be unwilling or unable to interact with peers and/or adults in school in an effective manner. These issues not only have an impact on the learning of the child of poverty but can also impact the learning of other children.
POVERTY RATE IN INDIA:
Poverty is one of the main problems which have attracted attention of sociologists and economists. It indicates a condition in which a person fails to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and mental efficiency. It is a situation people want to escape. It gives rise to a feeling of a discrepancy between what one has and what one should have.
The term poverty is a relative concept. It is very difficult to draw a demarcation line between affluence and poverty. According to Adam Smith - Man is rich or poor according to the degree in which he can afford to enjoy the necessaries, the conveniences and the amusements of human life.
Even after more than 50 years of Independence India still has the world's largest number of poor people in a single country. Of its nearly 1 billion inhabitants, an estimated 260.3 million are below the poverty line, of which 193.2 million are in the rural areas and 67.1 million are in urban areas. More than 75% of poor people reside in villages. Poverty level is not uniform across India. The poverty level is below 10% in states like Delhi, Goa, and Punjab etc whereas it is below 50% in Bihar (43) and Orissa (47).
It is between 30-40% in Northeastern states of Assam, Tripura, and Mehgalaya and in Southern states of TamilNadu and Uttar Pradesh.
Poverty has many dimensions changing from place to place and across time. There are two inter-related aspects of poverty-Urban and rural poverty. The main causes of urban poverty are predominantly due to impoverishment of rural peasantry that forces them to move out of villages to seek some subsistence living in the towns and cities.
In this process, they even lose the open space or habitat they had in villages albeit without food and other basic amenities. When they come to the cities, they get access to some food though other sanitary facilities including clean water supply still elude them. And they have to stay in the habitats that place them under sub-human conditions.
While a select few have standards of living comparable to the richest in the world, the majority fails to get two meals a day. The causes of rural poverty are manifold including inadequate and ineffective implementation of anti-poverty programmes.The overdependence on monsoon with non-availability of irrigational facilities often result in crop-failure and low agricultural productivity forcing farmers in the debt-traps.
The rural communities tend to spend large percentage of annual earnings on social ceremonies like marriage; feast etc.Our economic development since Independence has been lopsided .There has been increase in unemployment creating poverty like situations for many. Population is growing at an alarming rate. The size of the Indian family is relatively bigger averaging at 4.2.The other causes include dominance of caste system which forces the individual to stick to the traditional and hereditary occupations.
Since the 1970s the Indian government has made poverty reduction a priority in its development planning. Policies have focused on improving the poor standard of living by ensuring food security, promoting self-employment through greater access to assets, increasing wage employment and improving access to basic social services.
Launched in 1965, India's Public Distribution System has helped meet people's basic food needs by providing rations at subsidized prices. Although it has affected less than 20% of the Poor's food purchases, the system has been important in sustaining people's consumption of cereals, especially in periods of drought. It has provided women and girls with better access to food and helped overcome the widespread discrimination against female consumption within households. It has also reduced the burden of women, who are responsible for providing food for the household.
The largest credit-based government poverty reduction programme in the world, the Integrated Rural Development Programme provides rural households below the poverty line with credit to purchase income-generating assets. Launched in 1979, the programme has supplied subsidized credit to such groups as small and marginalized farmers, agricultural laborers, rural artisans, the physically handicapped, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
Within this target population, 40% of the beneficiaries are supposed to be women. Although the programme has reached 51 million families, only 27% of the borrowers have been women. The programme has significantly increased the income of 57% of assisted families.
Rural poverty is largely a result of low productivity and unemployment. The Jawahar Rozgar Yojana, a national public works scheme launched in 1989 with financing from the central and state governments, provides more than 700 million person days of work a year about 1% of total employment for people with few opportunities for employment.
The scheme has two components: a programme to provide low-cost housing and one to supply free irrigation wells to poor and marginalized farmers. The public works scheme is self-targeting. Since it offers employment at the statutory minimum wage for unskilled manual labor, only those willing to accept very low wages the poor are likely to enroll in the scheme.
By providing regular employment and thereby increasing the bargaining power of all rural workers, the public works scheme has had a significant effect in reducing poverty. It has also contributed to the construction of rural infrastructure (irrigation works, a soil conservation project, drinking water supply). Evaluations show that 82% of available funds have been channeled to community development projects. Targeting was improved in 1996 when the housing and irrigation well components were delinked and focused exclusively on people below the poverty line.
TRYSEM (Training rural youth for self employment) was started to provide technical skills to the rural youth and to help them to get employment in fields such as agriculture, industry, services and business activities. Youth of the poor families belonging to the age-group of 18-35 are entitled to avail the benefits of the scheme.
Priority is given to persons belonging to ST/SC and ex-servicemen and about 1/3 seats are reserved for women. Minimum Needs Programme was taken up as an integral part of the 5th Five Year Plan and it was intended to cater to the minimum needs of the people such as rural water supply, rural health, road building, adult education, primary education, rural electrification and improvement of the urban slums etc.
With the intention of removing urban unemployment some schemes such as SEPUP (Self-employment programme for the urban poor); SEEUY (Scheme for self-employment of the educated urban youths) .These schemes gives loans and subsidies for the urban unemployed youths to create or to find for themselves some jobs. The SEPUP had provided financial help for about 1.19 urban unemployed youths in the year 1990-91.
The participation of civil society organizations in poverty reduction efforts, especially those directed to women, has increased social awareness and encouraged governments to provide better services. Cooperatives such as the Self-Employed Women's Association provide credit to women at market rates of interest but do not require collateral; they also allow flexibility in the use of loans and the timing of repayments.
These civil society organizations have not only contributed to women's material well being; they have also helped empower them socially and politically. Such credit initiatives, by bringing women out of the confines of the household, are changing their status within the family and within village hierarchies. The demands of civil society organizations for better social services have spurred the government to launch campaigns to increase literacy and improve public infrastructure.
And their calls for greater accountability and real devolution of power are increasing the likelihood that expenditures for poverty reduction will reach the needy, especially women.
The Indian state has undoubtedly failed in its responsibilities towards its citizens over the last 50 odd years. There is a need for the state to move out of many areas and the process has been started with economic liberalization. The process of decentralization should devolute lot more powers, both functional and financial, to panchayats.
The lack of transparency and accountability has hampered our economic development at all levels. The problem of poverty persists because of a number of leakages in the system. New laws have to be evolved to ensure more accountability. Bodies like the Planning Commission should be modified into new constitutional bodies that can hold governments accountable for their failure to implement development programmes. A strong system of incentives and disincentives also needs to be introduced. The encouragement of non-governmental organizations and private sector individuals in tackling poverty is imperative, as the state cannot do everything.
CONCLUSION:
While the Directive principles issue directives for ensuring a decent and good living for all its citizens, and the Courts on their have through many case laws ensured that Right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India includes right to healthy living I submit humbly that, unless the psychological health of citizens is ensured with economic security, the problem of poverty is not even remotely solved with the help of legislations.
It is to be clearly understood that, at times, it may seem to be a infinitesimal portion of children, not to forget, they make future India and all our citizens have a fond hope that neither the legislature nor the executive wants to develop a violent, more aggressive posterity. If this is understood clearly there can be no place to develop any unhealthy symptom in the younger generation and removing poverty.
