The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17 presents an opportunity to acknowledge the effort and struggle of people living in poverty, a chance for them to make their concerns heard and a moment to recognize that poor people are the first ones to fight against poverty. The 2017 theme is Answering the call of October 17 to end poverty: A path toward peaceful and inclusive societies.
According to the Census of India, 2011, Odisha has a population of about 42 million, with 83.31 per cent living in rural and 16.69 per cent living in urban areas. Odisha stands second among the 14 States in the country with highest incidence of poverty after Bihar. While Bihar topped the list with registering highest 33.34 per cent of poor people, Odisha followed with 32.59 per cent by 2011-12. The incidence of poverty had been 54.40 per cent and 57.20 per cent in Bihar and Odisha, respectively, in 2004-05. However, Odisha has expressed satisfaction that it has recorded the highest reduction in poverty among all major States between 2004-05 and 20-11-12 and the Odisha Economic Survey (OES) -2013-14 , prepared by the Planning and Coordination Department, described the achievement as impressive.
The State has an agriculture-based economy which is in transition towards an industry and service-based economy. The workers’ participation ratio in Odisha at 41.8 per cent was slightly higher than 39.8 per cent at the national level in 2011. The share of marginal workers in the total workforce increased substantially from 33 per cent in 2001 to 39 per cent in 2011, while the share of main workers declined from 67 per cent in 2001 to 61 percent in 2011.
The share of total workers in the agricultural sector, i.e., both cultivators and agricultural workers declined from 64.7 per cent in 2001 to 61.8 per cent in 2011. This indicates that, although the majority of population in the State still depends on agriculture directly or indirectly, the State economy has been diversifying and there is a shift moving away from the agricultural sector to non-farm sectors. As per the Planning Commission of India, the KBK districts are the most backward regions of Odisha. Though these areas are said to be mineral rich regions but unfortunately people struggle to fulfil the basic necessities of life. There are more than 87 per cent of its people of KBK districts live below the poverty line. They suffer from varied socio-economic problems like, poverty, malnutrition and starvation.
Odisha witnesses wide regional, social and general disparities in development. The issues of poverty and inequality across the State are results of imbalanced development. All regions have not shared the gains of development in an equitable manner. With a view to addressing the problem of regional disparities and expediting development of interior tribal dominated districts, the Government has implemented a series of development programmes. The poverty alleviation programmes in India can be categorized based on whether it is targeted for rural areas or urban areas. Most of the programmes are designed to target rural poverty as prevalence of poverty is high in rural areas.
Also targeting poverty is challenging in rural areas due to various geographic and infrastructure limitations. During the Sixth and Seventh Five Year Plans, programmes like Integrated Rural Development Programme, Jawahar Rozgar Yojana, Rural landless Employment Guarantee Programme etc. have started with a view to eliminate poverty in the rural sector. These development initiatives aim at faster development of the backward regions of the State. Poverty can be eliminated by providing more employment opportunities so that people may be able to meet their basic needs. For this purpose, labour intensive rather than capital intensive techniques can help to solve the problem to a greater extent.
Rural and urban poverty should not be seen as separate entities but an integrated one to be tackled through urban development strategy. 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.
Despite introduction of several anti poverty programmes to achieve inclusive growth, there is no evidence of higher rate of decline in poverty. There is a need to review and re-examine issues relating to poverty and it is the primary responsibility of the Governments to take up appropriate programmes and policies in the context of liberal economic reforms in order to reduce the poverty and achieve the inclusive growth in Odisha.
Economic growth in India has to be inclusive in order to make it sustainable. Urban planners and economic development planners may derive smarter policies to increase opportunities for economic growth and development. The master plan should be prepared for the Smart Village keeping in view various resources available in the village. This would include economic development, infrastructural development and other aspects of human development i.e., education, health, drinking water supply etc.
The Institute of Town Planners, India, in the year 1995 conducted a study to detail out urban development plans formulation and implementation (UDPFI) guidelines. The UDPFI guidelines suggest various institutional support mechanisms that would help in achieving rural urban integration. Adequate infrastructure such as transportation, communication, energy and basic services is the backbone of the urban-rural development linkage approach. The initiation in Odisha must begin right from the backward regions like KBK areas. Development policies that facilitate these rural-urban linkages can promote income generation activities.
(Dr Praharaj teaches in Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar)