Poverty Eradication in India: A Study of National Policies, Plans and Programs

ABSTRACTIn almost all underdeveloped countries where per capita is very low, inequality has resulted in a number of evils, of which poverty is certainly the most serious one. Poverty infact is a socio-economic phenomenon that is intimately associated with inequality. It adversely affects health, efficiency and productivity which in turn affect their income. It deprives a segment of society of bare necessities of life- food, clothing, housing, education and health. Poverty is more of social marginalization of an individual, household or group in the community/society rather than inadequacy of to fulfill the basic needs. Indeed, inadequate is therefore one of the factors of marginalization but not the sole factor. The goal of poverty alleviation programme should aim merely increasing the level of individual, household or group but mainstreaming marginalized in the development process of the country. The country cannot claim economic growth when sections of the people are marginalized to the periphery of the society. The rapid economic growth process should accelerate the access to services like education and health services for all, especially the marginalized citizens. In India, even now in spite of all the development during the past five and a half decades, 34.3% of the population was getting less than $ 1 (PPP) a day. This percentage of population was considered to be poor on an international criterion suggested by World Development Report. So this paper is an attempt to study national policies, plans and programs for poverty eradication.Keywords: Poverty, Plans, Programmes, Poverty Eradication.INTRODUCTION:Poverty is a social-economic phenomenon in which a section of society is unable to fulfill even its basic necessities of life. The minimum needs are food, clothing, housing, education and other basic minimum needs. Humanity faces pains and miseries if it does not attain a subsistence level of such needs. It is generally agreed in this country that only they who fail to reach a certain minimum consumption standard should be regards as poor. No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable (Adam Smith, 1776). Poverty is about denial of opportunities and fulfilment of potential. Poverty and inequality are closely related, and inequality appears to have been on the rise worldwide in recent decades at both national and international levels. More than 80 percent of the world's population lives in countries where differentials are widening. The poorest 40 percent of the world's population account for only 5 percent of global income. On the other hand, the richest 20 percent account for 75 percent of world income, according to the United Nations Development Programme. Poverty is the principal cause of hunger and under nourishment. According to most recent estimates of the Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO, 2009), the number of hungry people world wide has reached 963 million, or roughly 15 percent of the estimated world population. This represents an increase of 142 million over the figure for 1990-92. Poverty essentially consists of two elements, narrowly-defined income poverty and a broader concept of human poverty. Income poverty is defined as the lack of necessities for minimum material wellbeing determined by the national poverty line. Human poverty means the denial of choices and opportunities for a tolerable life in all economic and social aspects recognising the problem, the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations also contain a commitment to halve the proportion of the world's population living in extreme poverty by 2015. Poverty is widespread in India, with the nation estimated to have a third of the world's poor. The World Bank (2005) estimated that 41.6 percent of the total Indian population lived under the international poverty line of US $1. …