Class 9

1. Understanding Poverty

Poverty is a multi-dimensional problem that manifests in several ways beyond a simple lack of income:

• Case Studies: Typical cases, like those of daily-wage laborer Ram Saran in a city and landless laborer Lakha Singh in a village, illustrate poverty as landlessness, unemployment, large family sizes, illiteracy, and poor health or malnutrition.
• Key Dimensions: It means hunger, lack of shelter, inability to afford medical treatment, and lack of clean water or sanitation. It is fundamentally a situation of helplessness.
• Social Scientist Perspectives: Beyond income and consumption levels, social scientists use indicators like social exclusion (living only in poor surroundings) and vulnerability (the greater probability of certain groups becoming or remaining poor) to understand poverty.

2. Measuring Poverty

• Poverty Line: A common method based on income or consumption levels. A person is considered poor if their level falls below a "minimum level" necessary to fulfill basic needs, a standard that varies by time and country.
• Calorie Requirements in India: Historically, the poverty line in India was calculated based on a daily calorie requirement—2,400 calories in rural areas and 2,100 calories in urban areas.
• National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI): Evolved by NITI Aayog, this index uses 12 indicators across three broad areas: Health (nutrition, mortality, maternal health), Education (schooling, attendance), and Standard of Living (cooking fuel, sanitation, water, housing, electricity, assets, bank accounts).

3. Poverty Trends and Disparities

• National Trends: The proportion of multidimensional poor in India declined from approximately 25% in 2015-16 to 15% in 2019-21.
• Inter-State Disparities: Poverty levels vary significantly by state. In 2019-21, states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Punjab had a Head Count Ratio (HCR) of less than 10%, while others like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh saw remarkable strides in reduction.
• Global Scenario: The World Bank uses a uniform standard of $2.15 per person per day to compare extreme poverty across developing countries. While global poverty has fallen, regional differences remain, with Sub-Saharan Africa expected to house nearly 9 in 10 of the extreme poor by 2030.
• Vulnerable Groups
  • Social Groups: Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST).
  • Economic Groups: Rural agricultural laborer households and urban casual laborer households.

4. Causes and Anti-Poverty Measures

• Causes of Poverty: Historical reasons include low economic development under British colonial rule. Modern factors include high population growth, unequal distribution of land and resources, and socio-cultural factors leading to high indebtedness.
• Anti-Poverty Strategy: The government's current strategy focuses on two factors: (i) promotion of economic growth and (ii) targeted anti-poverty programs.
• Key Government Schemes:
  • MGNREGA (2005): Provides 100 days of wage employment per year to rural households.
  • PM Poshan: Aims to improve the nutrition of students and eliminate school dropouts.
  • PM Ujjwala Yojana: Provides clean cooking fuel (LPG) to poor households to improve health and empower women.
  • PM Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan: Focuses on reducing maternal and infant mortality.

5. Challenges Ahead

While poverty has declined, major challenges remain, including wide disparities between rural and urban areas and among different states. Many scholars advocate broadening the concept of poverty into "human poverty," which includes access to education, healthcare, shelter, and freedom from social discrimination. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to end all types of poverty by 2030.

The National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI)

• represents a shift from measuring poverty solely through income or calories to a more holistic view of "human poverty."

1. What is the National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI)?

Developed by NITI Aayog, the NMPI captures overlapping deprivations that a person faces simultaneously. It goes beyond money to see if a person has access to basic services that define a decent quality of life. The index tracks 12 indicators categorized into three broad dimensions:

• Health (3 indicators): Nutrition, Child & Adolescent Mortality, and Maternal Health.
• Education (2 indicators): Years of Schooling and School Attendance.
• Standard of Living (7 indicators): Cooking fuel, Sanitation, Drinking water, Housing, Electricity, Assets, and Bank Accounts.

2. Latest Findings (Comparison: 2015-16 to 2019-21)

The book highlights a significant improvement in India's poverty situation based on the latest data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5).

3. Geographical and State-wise Findings

The findings show that while poverty is declining everywhere, there are wide disparities across the country:

• Remarkable Progress: States with historically high poverty levels, such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Rajasthan, saw the steepest decline in the number of poor people.
• Low Poverty States: States and UTs like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh have successfully pushed their multidimensional poverty Head Count Ratio to less than 10%.
• Fastest Reduction: Uttar Pradesh registered the largest decline in the number of poor people, with 3.43 crore people escaping multidimensional poverty.

4. Why this Index Matters

The book emphasizes that the NMPI is a more effective tool for the government than the old "Poverty Line" because:

1. Targeted Policy: It helps the government identify exactly where the deprivation is (e.g., if a region has high income but poor sanitation).
2. SDG Alignment: It aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 1.2, which aims to reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women, and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions by 2030.
3. Holistic View: It moves the focus toward "Human Poverty," which includes dignity, literacy, and healthcare rather than just survival.

Summary

• Dimensions: 3 (Health, Education, Standard of Living)
• Indicators: 12
• Latest National Score: ~15% (2019-21)
• People Lifted Out: 135 Million in 5 years.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

presented as the global framework that guides modern anti-poverty strategies and benchmarks India's progress.

1. The Core Mandate (SDG 1)

The book identifies SDG 1 as the primary goal related to this chapter

• Target 1.1: Aims to eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere by 2030.
• Global Standard: Under this goal, the international community (led by the World Bank) measures extreme poverty as living on less than $2.15 per person per day (2017 PPP).

2. Target 1.2: Multidimensional Poverty

The book places a heavy emphasis on Target 1.2, which moves beyond just income.

• The Goal: To reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women, and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions.
• India's Progress: The book notes that India is on track to achieve this target. The proportion of multidimensionally poor people in India fell from 24.85% in 2015-16 to 14.96% in 2019-21, nearly meeting the "halving" criteria ahead of schedule.

3. Interconnected Goals

The chapter mentions that poverty cannot be solved in isolation. It links the eradication of poverty to other specific SDGs:

• SDG 2 (Zero Hunger): Linked to the nutritional requirements and the PM Poshan scheme mentioned in the text.
• SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being): Linked to maternal health and the reduction of infant mortality rates.
• SDG 4 (Quality Education): Linked to literacy as a tool to escape the "vicious cycle" of poverty.
• SDG 5 (Gender Equality): Linked to the empowerment of women through schemes like PM Ujjwala Yojana.

4. India’s Monitoring Framework

The book explains that India monitors its progress toward these global goals through the National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI)

• The Role of NITI Aayog: NITI Aayog is identified as the nodal agency responsible for the performance of the states and UTs in achieving these goals.
• The 12 Indicators: The 12 indicators used in the NMPI (Health, Education, Standard of Living) are specifically aligned with the SDG targets to ensure India's national data is comparable with global standards.

Summary

17 Goals

Strategic Pillars of SDGs

The goals are often grouped into the "5 Ps" to help understand their broader impact:

1. People: Ending poverty and hunger in all forms and ensuring dignity and equality.
2. Planet: Protecting our planet's natural resources and climate for future generations.
3. Prosperity: Ensuring prosperous and fulfilling lives in harmony with nature.
4. Peace: Fostering peaceful, just, and inclusive societies.
5. Partnership: Implementing the agenda through a solid global partnership.