2. Poverty is a situation in which an individual is unable
to fulfill the basic necessities of life such as food,
shelter, clothing, basic education and healthcare.
3. • SECTIONS OF SOCIETY THAT ARE VULNERABLE TO
POVERTY IN URBAN AREAS (URBAN POOR)
PUSH CART VENDORS COBBLERS FLOWER SELLERS
STREET VENDORS RAG PICKERS BEGGARS
4. • SECTIONS OF SOCIETY THAT ARE VULNERABLE TO
POVERTY IN RURAL AREAS (RURAL POOR)
LANDLESS LABOURERS MARGINAL AND SMALL FARMERS
VILLAGE ARTISANS
5. CHARACTERISTICS OF POOR PEOPLE
(MANIFESTATIONS OF POVERTY)
They live in huts. Some of them do not have any
shelter.
In villages, they are landless. Some of them have
small pieces of land.
They do not get sufficient food. Starvation is
common among them. Children suffer from
malnutrition.
They are uneducated and unskilled. So, it is
difficult to get employment.
6. Many of them suffer from diseases. Health
condition is poor.
They do not get safe drinking water and sanitation
facilities.
The children do not get education.
They borrow money from money lenders and fall
in to debt trap.
Gender inequality prevails among them. Women
are the poorest among the poor.
8. ABSOLUTE POVERTY
• It refers to the total number of people living below poverty
line . Poverty line refers to that line which expresses per
capita average monthly expenditure incurred by the people
to satisfy their minimum needs.
• About 22% of India’s
Population is below the
Poverty line.
9. RELATIVE POVERTY
• It refers to the poverty of people in comparison to
another person, place or country.
• Examples:
• A Rickshaw puller is poor in comparison to a big
business man.
• A casual worker in rural area is poor in comparison
to a Manager of a company in urban area.
• India is poor in comparison to USA.
• Somalia is poor in comparison to India.
10. POVERTY LINE
The minimum income required for a person
to satisfy his basic necessities of life is termed Poverty
Line. It is used to identify the poor people.
11. Estimation of Poverty line
The minimum food required for a person is calculated in
calories. Then it is converted in to equivalent money value. The
minimum calorie intake that is estimated as 2,400 calories for a
rural person and 2,100 for a person in urban areas. Based on
this , in 2004-2005,the poverty line was defined for rural areas
as consumption worth Rs 447 per person a month and for Urban
areas it was Rs 579.
If a persons income or expenditure is less than poverty
line, he is considered poor (Below Poverty Line). India uses
Monthly Per capita Expenditure(MPCE) to identify BPL families.
12. DADABHAI NAOROJI
He is the first person to estimate Poverty
Line in India. He used Jail Cost of living. He estimated the
amount of money needed for providing food to a
prisoner. Adjustments were made to calculate the
amount needed for children.
13. Measurement of Poverty
2/3 x Full Diet + 1/6 x Nil Diet + 1/6 x Half Diet
2/3 x 1 + 1/6 x 0 + 1/6 x1/2
2/3+0+1/12=3/4
If a person consumes at least 3/4 of whole diet then he is above
poverty line .
POPULATION
ADULT (2/3) CHILDREN
(1/3)
1/2 1/2
14. Attempts to Estimate Poverty Line after Independence
(i) In 1962, the Planning Commission set up a Study
Group.
(ii) In 1979, another the ‘Task Force on Projections of
Minimum Needs and Effective Consumption Demand’
was formed.
(iii) In 1989 and 2005 ‘ Expert Groups’ were formed.
16. DRAWBACKS OR LIMITATIONS OF POVERTY LINE
(i) It does not differentiate between poor and very
poor.
(ii) It considers only the money needed for food,
shelter and clothing. Man needs many other
facilities like basic education and health care.
(iii) It does not consider social factors like illiteracy,
social discrimination, ill health etc.
17. ALTERNATIVE METHODS TO MEASURE POVERTY
• Amartya Sen , has developed an index known as
Sen Index.
• Poverty Gap Index and Squared Poverty Gap are the
other tools used to identify poor.
18. HEAD COUNT RATIO
• The Head count ratio (HCR) is the proportion of
population below Poverty Line.
Head Count Ratio = 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑃𝑜𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑃𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝐵𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑃𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑛𝑒
X 100
19.
20.
21. POVERTY SITUATION IN INDIA
(i) In 1973 – 74, 320 million people were below poverty line. In 2011 – 12,
this number has decreased to 270 million.
(ii) In 1973 – 74, 55% of the population was below poverty line. In 2011 – 12,
it has decreased to 22%
(iii) More than 75% of the poor people are living in rural areas.
(iv) Poverty is severe in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
(v) Poverty has decreased considerably in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
23. CAUSES OF POVERTY
(i) Population Explosion
(ii) Low Level of Economic Development
(iii) Poor State of Agriculture
(iv) High Illiteracy Rate
(v) High Level of Unemployment
(vi) High Level of Indebtedness
(vii) Inequalities of Income
(viii) Inflation
(ix) British Rule
24. BRITISH RULE AND POVERTY
• British followed a policy of de-industrialisation in
India. Indian industries declined during the British
Rule.
• Indian agricultural sector became backward. Land
Revenue systems introduced by the British resulted
in the decline of agriculture.
• The British imposed heavy tax on the Indian people.
• They took away India’s resources. They used India
as a market for selling their goods and a source of
raw materials.
25. A. Growth Oriented Approach:
Increase in GDP and Per Capita GDP will help
in abolishing poverty. The effects of economic growth will
spread to all sections of society. It will trickle down to
poorer sections of society. So, development of
agricultural sector, industrial sector and service sector
was given priority in the Five year Plans.
26. B. POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMMES
They are targeted programes to help poor
people to come out of poverty. They aim at providing
employment and create social assets.
27. (i) National Food for Work Programme (NFFWP) was
launched in 2004 to provide wage employment to
unemployed people.
Wage will be given in the form of food materials.
Creation of community assets like roads, schools,
hospitals and public buildings are given importance in
this programme.
28. (ii) Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP):
It aims at creating self employment opportunities
in rural areas and small towns.
The Khadi and Village Industries Commission is implementing
it.
Under this programme, one can get financial assistance in the
form of bank loans to set up small industries.
29. (iii) Prime Minister’s Rozgar Yojana (PMRY):It was
launched in 1994 to create self employment.
Educated young men are given financial and technical
help to start their own enterprises.
(iv) Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY):
SJSRY mainly aimed at creating employment
opportunities— both self-employment and wage
employment—in urban areas.
Now this programme is renamed Prime Minister’s
Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP).
30. (v) Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY):
This programme encourages rural unemployed men and
women to form self help groups and start their own
enterprises.
Financial and technical help are provided through SHGs.
Now this programme is restructured as National Rural
Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) (Deendayal Upadhyay Antyodaya
Yojana).
31. (vi) National Urban Livelihoods Mission:
This programme encourages urban unemployed men
to form self help groups and start their own
enterprises.
Technical and financial help is provided through SHGs.
32. (vi) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
Act (MNREGA):
It was passed in 2005.
Under this Act, it is the responsibility of the Government to
provide at least 100 days work to one member of a family in
an year.
It is also called Right to Work Act.
33. C) Third approach was to directly provide basic
facilities to the poor.
• Examples: Provide food materials at subsidised
rates, provide free education and health care,
provide safe drinking water and sanitation facilities
etc.
• Public Distribution System, Integrated Child
Development Scheme and Midday Meal Scheme.
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and Valmiki
Ambedkar Awas Yojana are aimed at providing
minimum basic necessities to the poor people.
34. • (i) Public Distribution System - The Indian food security
system was established by the G.o.I. under the Ministry of
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution to distribute
food and non-food items to India's poor at subsidised rates.
Major commodities distributed include staple food grains,
such as wheat, rice, sugar and essential fuels like kerosene,
through a network of fair price shops (also known as ration
shops).
• The basic objective of the public distribution system in India is
to provide essential consumer goods at cheap and subsidised
prices to the consumers so as to insulate them from the
impact of rising prices of these commodities and maintain the
minimum nutritional status of our population. Prior
implementing NFSA, there were mainly three types of ration
cards issued by State Govts. such as APL, BPL and Antyodaya
(AAY) ration cards distinguished by different colours opted by
concerned State Govt.
35. (ii) Integrated Child Development
Scheme
• ICDS is a government programme in India which
provides food, pre-school education, primary
healthcare, immunization, health checkup and referral
services to children under 6 years of age and their
mothers. The scheme was launched in 1975,
discontinued in 1978 and then re-launched by the
Tenth Five Year Plan which linked ICDS to Anganwadi
centres. In addition to fighting malnutrition and ill
health, the programme is also intended to combat
gender inequality by providing girls the same resources
as boys. The widespread network of ICDS has an
important role in combating malnutrition especially for
children of weaker groups
36. (iii) Mid-day Meal Scheme
• The Mid-day Meal Scheme is a school meal
programme of the Government of India designed to
better the nutritional standing of school-age children
nationwide. The programme supplies free lunches on
working days for children in primary and upper primary
classes in government, government aided, local body,
Education Guarantee Scheme, and alternate innovative
education centres, Madarsa and Maqtabs supported
under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, and National Child Labour
Project schools run by the ministry of labour ,Serving
120,000,000 children in over 1,265,000 schools and
Education Guarantee Scheme centres, it is the largest of
its kind in the world.
38. National Social Assistance
Programmes (1995)
The National Social Assistance Programme is a
Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the Government
of India that provides financial assistance to the
elderly, widows and persons with disabilities in
the form of social pensions. It includes -
(i) Old Age Pension Scheme
(ii) Widow Pension Scheme
(iii) Disability Pension Scheme
39. • Jandhan Bank Accounts: People are encouraged to
open zero balance bank accounts. This will promote
saving habit. It enables Government to provide all
benefits and subsidies directly to the people. The
account holder gets insurance for Rs. 30000/- and
accident insurance for Rs. 1 lakh.
40. REASONS BEHIND THE FAILURE OF THE POVERTY
ALLEVIATION PROGRAMMES
• Due to unequal distribution of land and other
assets, the benefits from direct poverty alleviation
programmes have been taken away by the non-
poor.
• The resources allocated for Poverty Alleviation
Programmes are not sufficient.
• The Government and Bank officials who are
responsible to implement the programmes are
illmotivated, ill trained.
41. • Local institutions do not participate actively in
these programmes.
• The people just above poverty line do not get the
benefits of these programmes.
• People’s participation in these programmes is less.
42. • 1)Small farmers and seasonal workers are categorised as:
• a) chronic poor b) churning poor
• C) occasionally poor d) transient poor
• 2) The pattern of development that the successive five year plans envisaged
laid emphasis on the:
• A) upliftment of the poor b) integrating poor into main stream
• C) achieving minimum std. of living d) All of the above
• 3) The govt. uses ……….. as basis for income of households to identify the poor.
• 4) Poverty is not a challenge for India alone but for the world. T/F. Reason
• 5) Economists identify the poor on the basis of their ownership of assets:
• A) income b) expenditure c) occupation d) living standard
• 6) The average calorie required by a person in urban area is:
• A) 2400 b) 2100 c) 2500 d) 2150
• 7) Who was the first person to define poverty in terms of jail cost of living?
• A) William Digby b) Dadabhai Naoroji c) R C Desai d) V K R V Rao
43. • 8) In 2013 – ’14, nearly ……… households got employment opportunities
under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment guarantee act:
• A) one crore b) five crore c) two crore d) seven crore
• 9) ……….. Mainly aims at creating employment opportunities, both self
employment & wage employment in urban areas:
• a) Rural employment generation program
• B) Prime minister’s Rozgar Yojana
• C) Swarna Jayanthi Shahari rozgar yojana
• D) Swarna jayanthi gram swarozgar yojana
• 10)The educated unemployed from low income families in rural & urban
areas can get financial help to set up any kind of enterprise that generates
employment under:
• a) Rural employment generation program
• B) Prime minister’s Rozgar Yojana
• C) Swarna Jayanthi Shahari rozgar yojana
• D) Swarna jayanthi gram swarozgar yojana
44. • 11) Under which one of the following self employment programmes, one can
get financial assistance in the form of bank loans to set up small industries:
• a) Rural employment generation program
• B) Prime minister’s Rozgar Yojana
• C) Swarna Jayanthi Shahari rozgar yojana
• D) Swarna jayanthi gram swarozgar yojana
• 12) Which of the following is a poverty estimation tool:
• A) sen index b) poverty gap index c)squared poverty gap d) all of these
• 13) Assertion : Urban poverty is considered to be a spill over of rural poverty.
• Reason : People from rural areas migrate to urban areas in search of better
job opportunities and better standard of living.
• a) Both assertion and reason are true and reason is the correct explanation of
assertion.
• B) Both assertion and reason are true but reason is not the correct
explanation of assertion.
• C) Assertion is true but reason is false.
• D) Assertion is false but reason is true.
45. • 14) Assertion : Poverty should be defined in terms of per capita calorie
consumption.
• Reason: Per capita calorie consumption defines the actual use and type of
goods consumed.
• a) Both assertion and reason are true and reason is the correct
explanation of assertion.
• B) Both assertion and reason are true but reason is not the correct
explanation of assertion.
• C) Assertion is true but reason is false.
• D) Assertion is false but reason is true.
• 15) Assertion : GDP growth necessarily helps in eradication of poverty.
• Reason : If increase in GDP happens due to increase in technology, it is
called as jobless growth.
• explanation of assertion.
• B) Both assertion and reason are true but reason is not the correct
explanation of assertion.
• C) Assertion is true but reason is false.
• D) Assertion is false but reason is true.
