Following the government's approach of poverty line, the 61st round of NSSO depicts that India has 27.5 per cent of its total population below poverty which is around 301 million people if 1993-94 estimates are to be considered. The whole statistics changes to 21.8 per cent i.e. 238.5 million if 1999-2000 estimates are to be considered.
Let’s consider 1993-94 estimates of Uniform reference period for analysis. In Orissa 46.4 per cent of total population is below poverty i.e. out of 100 around 46 are below poverty line whereas Punjab has just 8.4 per cent of people below poverty. One feels these 8.4 per cent of people are those who have migrated as landless labors to work in fields. West Bengal has reduced it’s poverty from 63.43 per cent from 1973 -74 to 24.7 per cent in 2004-05 seems a tremendous result. But the reality is that poor have either migrated or have joined red forces. Statistics are superficial and the reasons are plenty.
The most important thing to conclude is that our population has a very large section of people who are poor to the extent of being not able to meet the rising demand or even basic necessity of life. What new can be done to improve the situation?
Industrial development and Poverty
Except footloose industries like IT and ITES, rest all are some or other way related to raw materials and primary industries like agriculture. As observed earlier India has its largest section of people in agriculture and agro based industry. Hence largest section of poverty belongs to this sector. Industrial growth is inevitable and is a necessity to remain progressive. This has been the trend world over and is also applicable to India.
Let’s see how industries work in India.
All the industry working in primary sectors takes permission from government to operate, ignoring local consent. This political decision authority, acts according to the constitution of India which enlists land in State list as under VIIth Schedule, and claims of people welfare from such decisions.
The government says that money earned from Industries would go in union fund, then go to state funds and then to local bodies and finally to the affected population for welfare. This process works moderately well in urban scenario where settlements are new and cosmopolitan. But fails severely in rural areas where settlements are since time immemorial. Hence what government tries now is to convert the rural areas to urban areas (at least in theory) to show the validity of constitutional way of financial relation.
It would be futile to justify any claims why funds don’t reach to the source where they are generated from, Corruption is the reason and irony is government also knows it, which means in a way supports the corrupt practices.
It all ends up in creating Project Affected Populations (PAPs), who lose the land, which is their only source of income, their natural habitations and which all together affects their social structure and impacts their economies. Most of them migrate to cities for some jobs and end up being slum dwellers. If there would have been a regular source of income from their land holding the whole process could have been avoided to a greater extent.
Poverty and PAPs.
Every industry has to be made liable to local population or community where they operate. Not only by providing basic amenities and regular job (if some one is eligible) but also by paying them the rent of the land on regular basis which was acquired from them. If this creates a problem for industry then it should allot a financial stake to the community, affected by project and whenever its quarterly reports are published, the stake of the community should also be mentioned along. The money share of this stake holder can be paid to the community. This would at least provide regular money to the affected. This can also be one way of using the market phenomenon to generate money.
In India companies have tremendous potential. The recent IPO of Coal India Limited shows the worth Indian companies carry. Hence utilization of market for social goals should also be considered in financial way.
Poverty and Rural Area
Build roads - surfaced roads- in the rural villages. The money to build them is generated by donations from the local area and residents. Consisting of all village population above 15 yrs. donate money or physical effort.
The responsibility for the road to be managed, maintained and repaired should lie with the local community head /panchayat. The building of road idea is parallel to that of Keynesian approach of digging hole and filling it, but here one would end up in generating resources, effort, from with in to build, operate and manage the asset.
Once the roads are built by the villagers themselves, they would realize waiting for authority made them more helpless. They would ensure the road of their effort is well preserved and valued. The roads would provide the necessary link as now good roads would allow good connectivity, business link, market growth and progress. It is expected the good roads allows timely development.
Like alumni of schools and colleges, villages should club in all the persons who presently are established outside in cities and foreign lands. The regionalism factor can work wonder when used for exchange of technology, ideas and socio-economical growth.
The success of the idea resides on the assumption that every Indian some or other way is linked to one village either directly or through his ancestors. Western world today talks about networking as the only way for ideas to thrive, social networking websites are some of its example. The idea of networking actually can be credited to any multi-cultural, multi-regional society like India, where it doesn’t take us time to mingle with people with whom we share our national, regional, cultural identity. Thus it would stand true if every villages networks itself. Today with the use of technology it is faster and convenient too.
It is considered that a big improvement in agricultural sector alone would drive the progress and hence a green revolution is the only need. The earlier green revolution revolutionalised agriculture sector, but the action of momentarily subsidy and loan waiver which was adopted to make it benefits long term and successful became a political tool. The subsidy initiated the vicious circle of poverty for agriculture depended rural poor that its effect can be seen from farmer suicides incidences till today.
The subsidy to agricultural sector stops adoption of new technology and practices, as the infrastructure associated with new technology are not under subsidized schemes. Hence farmers compulsorily opt for subsidized scheme. Large sections of farmers are dependent on loans but failure of crops stops them from timely repayment of loans. The crops fail because of such practices and facilities available in subsidized scheme (which farmer opts) do not cover each crop individually. Bad monsoon is a factor but is not the only factor.
Today the rural sector needs the urban hand of help. The urbanites have to look back to their roots. These roots are the foundation of the country and hence a timely collective action is the way out.
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Abhilash Mohapatra not only thinks about India
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