The United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is being observed on October 17.
The day presents an opportunity to acknowledge the efforts and struggle of people living in poverty to make their concerns heard. The day also reflects the willingness of people living in poverty to use their expertise to contribute to eradication of poverty. The theme for this year’s commemoration is “Working together towards a world without discrimination: Building on the experience and knowledge of people in extreme poverty.”
Cities have always been at the centre of economic growth, technological advances and cultural production. But their rapid growth has also brought negative impacts like urban violence and poverty, homelessness, overcrowding and health problems, pollution and waste.People move to the city for various reasons, mostly economic. The promise of jobs and comfort “pulls” people to cities. There are also “push” factors as natural disasters can cause extreme rural poverty and that “pushes” people to urban area in search of job.
Sustainable economic growth is fundamental in the fight against poverty. Economic growth can reduce poverty through employment and increased incomes. Policies and programmes that support economic growth are powerful pro-poor measures as they not only have direct employment and income benefits but can also increase the resources available for other pro-poor initiatives.
Key policy initiatives to promote sustained economic growth include those that seek to create conducive environment for private sector investment, promote local enterprise and self-employment, support infrastructure and social services development. Pressures of population and poverty often compound the threat of deforestation and the exploitation of resources. Effective poverty reduction strategies, therefore, need to be accompanied by measures that enhance productivity and quality of environment and natural resources. Besides, economic growth can effectively reduce poverty only when coupled with a comprehensive programme of social development.
According to the Planning Commission, “For rural areas, the national poverty line is estimated at 816 rupees per capita per month and 1,000 rupees per capita per month in urban areas.” This implies that a person whose consumption is below Rs 33.33 in urban areas and below Rs 27.20 in rural areas is to be considered below the poverty line. But the poverty line would be Rs 66.10 for urban areas and Rs 35.10 for rural regions, based on the 66th round of the National Sample Survey for 2009-10, which provides a more realistic marker for estimating both the poverty line and the population below it than the Planning Commission’s calculation.
The number of people living below the poverty line is estimated 217 million in rural areas and 52 million in urban areas in 2011-12 against 326 million and 81 million in 2004-05. Thus, the poverty rate has declined by nearly 17 per cent in rural areas and 12 per cent in urban areas. While these figures present a favourable picture on a macro level, the distribution of the success differs from State to State.
The Government has made efforts to reduce poverty, mainly through self-employment initiatives, rural public works, food subsidies and nutrition programs and increased spending for basic education and primary healthcare. Despite some progress, poverty remains widespread throughout India. Geographically, the poor are mainly concentrated in the eastern and central parts of the country, with the highest incidence in Odisha, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
The 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Constitution support an increase in the responsibility from the States to the rural and urban local authorities as well as the mainstreaming of the poor and disadvantaged into the development process. However, in doing so, recognition is also given to the need for institutional strengthening and capacity building at the local level. Building a fair and equitable governance system and development process has thus become a crucial issue of poverty reduction.
Rural development has assumed global attention especially among the developing nations. It has great significance for a country like India where 65 per cent of the people live in rural areas. Rural development in India is one of the most important factors for economic growth. Agriculture contributes nearly one-fifth of the gross domestic product. To increase the growth of agriculture, the Government has planned several programmes. Agriculture, handicrafts, fisheries, poultry and dairy are the primary contributors to the rural economy.
The Union Ministry of Rural Development is the apex body for formulating policies. The introduction of Bharat Nirman in collaboration with the State Governments and the Panchayati Raj Institutions is a major step towards improvement of the rural sector. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 was introduced by this Ministry to improve the living conditions in the rural sector. Over the years, the Central Government has launched a number of poverty alleviation programmes like the Nehru Rozgar Yojana, Urban Basic Services for the Poor and Prime Minister’s Integrated Urban Poverty Eradication Programme.
Poor urban planning and management can have crucial results for the urban economy. Poorly-managed urban settlements cannot keep pace with urban expansion, and slums will grow, bringing with them poverty and social unrest. It is important that the governments at the national and local (municipal) levels of cities and towns and rural areas, recognise the potentials of rural-urban development linkages and the positive role they can play in poverty alleviation.
It is now widely recognised that there exists an economic, social and environmental interdependence between urban and rural areas and a need for balanced and mutually supportive approach to development of the two areas. Rural-urban linkage generally refers to the growing flow of public and private capital, people (migration and commuting) and goods (trade) between the urban and rural areas. Adequate infrastructure such as transportation, communication, energy and basic services is the backbone of the urban-rural development linkage approach. Adequate investments in infrastructure, particularly transportation infrastructure, also improve rural productivity.
Besides, good governance is vital to poverty reduction as it directly supports participatory pro-poor policies, facilitates sound macroeconomic and public expenditure management, ensures accountability, encourages growth of the private sector, promotes effective delivery of public services and helps establish a rule of law.
(Dr Mayarani Praharaj works in the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar)