[Commerce Class Notes] on Poverty Alleviation Policies and Programs Pdf for Exam

Have you ever wondered about the lives of those 12 million people who sleep under the sky every night with an empty stomach? Since Independence, the planning commission and the government of India have worked towards the eradication of poverty from the nation. The fifth five-year plans have been formulated with the major goal of alleviating poverty with the slogan – ‘Garibi Hatao’. 

The very first Sustainable Development Goal has been formulated with the idea of SDG1: No Poverty. Considering the importance and need of the society and to take India from a third (developing) World to a state of the first World (developed), the government has been coming up with various poverty alleviation policies and programs. 

This section discusses the programs and initiatives taken by the government to remove the burden of poverty. A student needs to understand the poverty alleviation policy and remember the plans for an in-depth understanding of procedures.

Key Learnings from the Chapter:

• What is Poverty?

• Plans introduced by the Government for Poverty Alleviation

• What is the need for Poverty alleviation? 

• Reason for the inefficiency of Poverty alleviation programs and policies

• Frequently Asked Questions

What is Poverty?

According to the World Bank, “Poverty is hunger. Poverty is a lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not having access to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, it is fear for the future, living one day at a time.

In other words, in addition to lack of money, poverty is the incapacity of a person to participate in recreational activities, incapacity to educate their children, incapacity to get an appropriate healthcare facility. To overcome these challenges, the Government has formulated the poverty alleviation program. 

Plans Introduced by the Government throughout these Years

To discuss the government policies in eradicating poverty, a student must know the names of programs introduced. They must know the functions of each of these acts to have all-around information and knowledge.

Some of the renowned policies of poverty alleviation programs in India 2019 are –

1. National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

This scheme is well known as NREGA aims to help the poor and BPL by promoting growth and development. It aids an individual by enhancing the general living standards of rural residents by promoting 100 days off employment opportunities. This is offered to adults belonging to a   household interested in performing an unskilled form of labor.

This scheme was introduced on February 2, 2006, in different phases. This scheme holds an exceptional value due to its employment generating facility.

2. Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojna

PMGSY launched on December 25, 2002, to construct roads that connect an urban area to rural areas. It is a centrally sponsored scheme that aims to build high-quality roads. This aided in generating employment for rural masses and their transportation development.

3. Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojna

This plan was launched in 2001 by the unification of two important schemes EAS and JGSY. Its objective is to offer food security and employment to the residents of rural areas. This scheme also helped in the production of long-standing assets for the community. This program aids poor masses mostly emphasizing on SCs, women, STs, and parents of children inhibited from dangerous industries.

4. Indira Aawas Yojna

This scheme offers states shelter facilities and development options. Ideally, people belonging below the poverty line get this facility. This scheme was made to provide accommodation for the poor and convert Kachha houses into pakka ones.

5. Jawahar Gram Samriddhi Yojana

Also known as JGSY, it was launched in 1999, aiming to create infrastructure living options in rural areas in a demand-driven way. It was aimed at the village community and their development. Moreover, it helped in creating employment options for the rural population based on skill. The village panchayat usually controls it.

 

Need for Poverty Alleviation Program 

The poverty alleviation policies and programs discussed above were formulated for the given reasons – 

•  To reduce the rate of poverty in the country 

• To ensure equality, liberty, and equanimity among all the citizen 

• To ensure justice is done to all the individuals  

• To fight problems related to poverty like malnutrition, illiteracy, high crime rate 

• To ensure a better standard of living for every individual

• To make India transform into a developed nation  

Reason for the Inefficiency of Poverty Alleviation Program in India

Though the programs and policies have been successful in reducing poverty to an extent, however, there have been certain loopholes, some of them are – 

• The disparity in resource allocation – some states receive more aids whereas others face scarcity of resources in implementing the program

• One size fits all approach – has been inefficient as one program cannot match the need of all different challenges in different states

• Bureaucratic inefficiency – untapped corruption and red-tapism delay the implementation of certain programs

• People’s engagement – in certain programs is less, making it fail to reach the grassroots level. 

• Overlapping programs – various schemes and policies are repetitions in itself thus, unable to meet the needs of the beneficiaries. 

You can think of other reasons and write in the comment box. 

Continuing the problems is not enough to solve a problem, we need to find the solutions, some of them are discussed as – 

Solutions to make the Poverty Alleviation Program Effective – 

• Adopting bottom-up approach – where programs are designed according to the need of the people at the grass-roots level

• Decentralized allocation – of work, making the people participate in their development process

• Use of technology – to eliminate any form of corruption at all the levels

• Empowering Panchayats – by allocation enough resources to carry out the programs

• Regular auditing – of the progress of the poverty alleviation policies. 

Think of more solutions and suggest them in the comment box. Therefore, poverty is a disease that restricts a nation from becoming prosperous. Adopting the Gandhian philosophy of ‘trusteeship’, the whole nation should stand together to eradicate the problem of poverty and make India great again.