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CAUTION: The following links
and accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the
situation in India in the early years of the 21st Century.
Some of these links may lead to websites that present allegations that are
unsubstantiated, misleading or even false. No attempt has been
made to validate their authenticity or to verify their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE Students If you are looking
for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on
this page and others to see which aspects of poverty are of particular
interest to you. You might be
interested in exploring the relationship between distribution of labor and per-capita
GDP, for example. Perhaps your paper
could focus on life expectancy or infant mortality. Other factors of interest might be
unemployment, literacy, access to basic services, etc. On the other hand, you might choose to
include some of the possible outgrowths of poverty such as Human Trafficking,
Street Children,
or even Prostitution. There is a lot to the subject of
Poverty. Scan other countries as well
as this one. Draw comparisons between
activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources
that are available on-line. Teachers Check out some of
the Resources
for Teachers attached to this website. *** Extreme Weather *** India
has been grappling with extreme weather conditions, impacting millions of
lives and livelihoods. An intense heatwave swept through northern India, with
temperatures reaching a record 49.2°C (120.5°F) in parts of the capital,
Delhi. This marks the fifth heatwave in Delhi since March. The states of
Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Punjab, and
Bihar have also experienced soaring temperatures. Extreme temperatures and
low rainfall since mid-March have caused widespread suffering, including
deaths, crop losses, forest fires, and disruptions to power and water
supplies. IPCC
Warning: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that
India will face more frequent and intense heatwaves, extreme rainfall events,
erratic monsoons, and increased cyclonic activity in the coming decades. Average
temperatures in India have risen by approximately 0.7% between 1901 and 2018,
partly due to climate change. Heatwaves have claimed over 22,000 lives
between 1992 and 2015. – adapted
from Microsoft BING Copilot *** ARCHIVES *** The World Factbook - India U.S. Central Intelligence Agency CIA www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html [accessed 29
December 2020] World Factbook website
has moved to ---> www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/india/ [accessed 5 January 2021] India
has a young population and corresponding low dependency ratio, healthy
savings and investment rates, and is increasing integration into the global
economy. However, long-term challenges remain significant, including: India's
discrimination against women and girls, an inefficient power generation and
distribution system, ineffective enforcement of intellectual property rights,
decades-long civil litigation dockets, inadequate transport and agricultural
infrastructure, limited non-agricultural employment opportunities, high
spending and poorly targeted subsidies, inadequate availability of quality
basic and higher education, and accommodating rural-to-urban migration. GDP -
per capita (PPP): $7,200 (2017
est.) Labor
force - by occupation: agriculture:
47% industry:
22% services: 31% (2014 est.) Unemployment
rate: 8.5% (2017
est.) Population
below poverty line: 21.9% (2011
est.) Maternal
mortality rate: 145
deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) Infant
mortality rate: total: 35.4
deaths/1,000 live births Life
expectancy at birth: total population: 69.7 years Drinking
water source: improved: total: 92.7% of
population Physicians
density: 0.78 physicians/1,000 population (2017) Sanitation
facility access: improved: total: 72% of population Electricity
access: electrification - total population: 84.5% (2016) The
Borgen Project - India borgenproject.org/category/india/ [accessed 25 January 2021] The Borgen Project works with U.S. leaders to utilize the United
States’ platform behind efforts toward improving living conditions for the
world’s poor. It is an innovative,
national campaign that is working to make poverty a focus of U.S. foreign
policy. It believes that leaders of
the most powerful nation on earth should be doing more to address global
poverty. From ending segregation to providing women with the right to vote,
nearly every wrong ever righted in history was achieved through advocacy. The
Borgen Project addresses the big picture, operating
at the political level advancing policies and programs that improve living
conditions for those living on less than $1 per day. ~
How Ekal Vidyalaya Is
Adapting For Indian Children borgenproject.org/ekal-vidyalaya-is-adapting-for-indian-children/ ~
Selco Brings Solar Power To India borgenproject.org/solar-power-to-india/ ~
4 Ways India’s Government Can Improve Its Gdp
Per Capita borgenproject.org/improving-indias-gdp-per-capita/ ~
A Million Wells For Bangalore: Restoring Water To The Indian City borgenproject.org/a-million-wells-for-bangalore/ ~
Efforts To Reduce Pollution In The Ganges River borgenproject.org/ganges-river/ ~
6 Facts About Wash Advancements In India borgenproject.org/wash-advancements-in-india/ ~
The Correlation Between Environmental Instability And Poverty In India borgenproject.org/environmental-stability-and-poverty-in-india/ ~
Water Purification Technology In India Is Saving Lives borgenproject.org/water-purification-technology-in-india/ ~
Ending India’s Aids Epidemic borgenproject.org/indias-aids-epidemic/ ~
Benefits Of The Smart Card India Initiative borgenproject.org/smart-card-india/ The
Linkage Between Poverty and Leprosy Nalikena Muyunda Siyoto, Mulungushi University-Zambia [ Long URL] [accessed 12 April
2022] Some
studies have shown positive linkages between food shortage and food insecurity
with the occurrence of leprosy, and they suggest that impaired host immune
response against the causative bacteria as a result of insufficient
nutritional intake is the possible cause of this condition (Kerr-Pontes et
al, 2006). Insufficient nutrition is related to poverty as only poor persons
can lack nutrition. Some of the world’s poorest areas, including Mozambique,
Bangladesh and India, are
disproportionately burdened by leprosy and other neglected tropical diseases
such as lymphatic filariasis. This is because poor
living conditions can act as a breeding ground for such diseases or
exacerbate symptoms of existing ailments. Why
international donors should stop funding oxygen: Many more Indians are in
need of basic necessities like food Smarinita Shetty, Developing India, Edit Page, India, Times of India TOI, 22 May 2021 [ Long
URL] [accessed 23 May
2021] Even as
the second wave of Covid-19 rages through the country, and media and global
donor attention is focussed on the supply of
oxygen, the rest of the country is grappling with extreme hunger, poverty and
loss of livelihoods. International
donor attention however has been entirely focussed
on the supply of oxygen in Delhi, and now to some extent, Bengaluru. Indians
are about 60 per cent of new poor caused by the pandemic Nirmala Carvalho, AsiaNews, 31 March 2021 www.asianews.it/news-en/Indians-are-about-60-per-cent-of-new-poor-caused-by-the-pandemic-52759.html [accessed 1 April 2021] In
India, the lockdown caused by the pandemic included the shutdown of most
economic activities, job losses and falling incomes, with the country
plunging in a deep recession. “India seems
to be the worst-hit country in South Asia, both in terms of contracting GDP
and the sharp rise in the number of its poor,” reads the Pew Center’s study.
“India added 75 million people to poverty, accounting for 60% of the rise in
poor populations globally.” “Rising
poverty and hunger can be seen by the long lines outside the gates” of the St
Catherine of Siena’s Home and School for Destitute Children in Bandra (Mumbai), said its director, Brother Joseph.
“Hunger is increasing, the poor have no source of income’ and “The lines for
food are getting longer,” India has a large
underweight population with TB – and the Covid-19 crisis is only making it
worse Deepti Chavan
& Keyuri Bhanushali,
SCROLL.IN, 17 February 2021 [Long
URL] [accessed 17
February 2021] As
Covid-19 grips the headlines, we often forget that India has one of the
largest underweight populations in the world. In some states, these
statistics are extremely grim. We often forget that while low weight is a
classic symptom of poverty, it is also one of tuberculosis, a disease
associated with the wasting away of fat and muscle. Being underweight is both
a cause and a consequence of TB. Poverty
and resulting hunger and undernutrition increase the chances of active TB and
also the severity of the disease. It reduces patients’ speed of recovery and
exacerbates suffering side effects from the medicine, and the likelihood of
their becoming one of the many Indians that TB claims every year. New
community refrigerator opens for poor, hungry Mission Newswire, Salesian Missions, 28 January 2021 missionnewswire.org/india-new-community-refrigerator-opens-for-poor-hungry/ [accessed 29 January 2021] Don
Bosco Nerul, located in Mumbai, India, has installed
a community refrigerator to provide food and snacks for those facing hunger
and have nowhere else to turn. Salesian missionaries are calling this
initiative Don Bosco Cares. During
the lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Don Bosco Nerul
reached out to 25,000 families and 10,000 migrants who had been impacted.
Many who were already in poverty faced hunger without having money to buy
food. While the lockdown has ended, migrants and those living in poverty,
including those living on the streets, are still not able to feed themselves. Don
Bosco Nerul is working to reach out to these
individuals and provide support in their time of need. The community
refrigerator is one such initiative. It launched on Jan. 22, and anyone who
is poor or hungry may open the refrigerator and take enough to satisfy their
immediate hunger. There is another box that has snacks, secondhand clothes
and handmade masks. Formula
to change society Mata Amritanandamayi, New Indian Express, 24 January 2021 www.newindianexpress.com/lifestyle/spirituality/2021/jan/24/formula-to-change-society-2253329.html [accessed 24 January 2021] We are not
isolated islands. We are all links in a chain. We cannot wait for others to
change. We should be prepared to change first. In this way, we can transform
society. Once there was a village in the middle of a forest. There were no
street lights. Because of this, the number of murders and robberies
increased. The villagers went to the police and asked them to install street
lights, but nothing was done. The crime rate continued to grow. Then, one
day, one of the villagers got an idea: Why not light a lamp and hang it out
on the veranda. At least this would illumine that small area. So, he
did it. His neighbours followed suit. Eventually,
the entire village was illumined. Murder and theft soon ended. The good deed
of one individual set into motion the transformation of the entire village. Tigers
Stalk as Storms, Poverty Force Indians Deep Into Mangrove Forests Devjyot Ghoshal, Reuters, Wire Service Content, 16 January 2021 [Long
URL] [accessed 14 January
2021] Haldar fishes in the river most days. Twice a
month, she travels deeper into the forests to catch crabs, rowing six hours
on a rickety boat along with her mother and staying in the undergrowth for
several days. Almost
all of the 2,000 rupees ($27) she makes each month to run her household and
send her youngest daughter, Papri, to school comes
from fishing and crabbing. Her elderly father and other relatives look after
the girl while she is gone. "If
I don't go to the jungle, I won't have enough food to eat," Haldar told Reuters. Poverty, limited access to resources explain high mortality rates in older Indian women Emily Henderson, B.Sc., New Medical Life Sciences, 8 December 2020 [Long
URL] [accessed 12 December 2020] "The estimates
from my model indicate that the decline in women's intrahousehold
bargaining power during post-reproductive ages could help explain the
excessively high mortality rates of older women in India," she
continued. "The decrease in women's bargaining power is reflected in
their diminished ability to access household resources. As a result, at older
ages poverty rates are significantly higher among women than men, which negatively affects women's health and increases
their mortality risk. The excessive poverty rates of women are even more
pronounced in households where women beyond childbearing ages have no
children to care for." This organisation is alleviating poverty and working with governments to prepare their public systems for the new normal Kanishk Singh, Social Story, 8 December 2020 yourstory.com/socialstory/2020/12/nudge-foundation-poverty-alleviation-fellowship [accessed 8 December 2020] “Our mission at
The/Nudge Foundation is to eliminate poverty sustainably and scalably, and bring more than a million lives out of
poverty. Centre for Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship focuses on youth employability through
English and new-age skills training. It has served over 10,000 low-income
youth across 10 states through its skilling programmes
and placement opportunities. Centre for Rural Development
addresses extreme poverty through its programmes –
such as rebuilding 500,000 migrant homes in Uttar Pradesh, and providing
sustainable livelihoods to women. Their core work is in Jharkhand with
families who live on less than Rs 20,000/year. The pandemic has
created a second crisis in India — the rise of child trafficking Jessie Yeung and Priyali Sur, CNN, 24 October 2020 www.cnn.com/2020/10/24/asia/india-covid-child-trafficking-intl-hnk-dst/index.html [accessed 25 October
2020] After India went
into total lockdown in March, more than half of all migrant households in
Bihar state lost all their income, according to a study conducted in July by
UNICEF and Population Council Institute. The region is home
to millions of migrant workers, including Mujeeb's
father, a construction worker in Delhi. The state
government provided food rations -- but only 42% of migrant households found
the aid sufficient, according to the study. A survey by
Satyarthi's Children's Foundation of 245 households in rural areas of five
poorer states, including Bihar, found that 21% of respondents were
potentially ready to send their children under 18 to urban areas for work due
to their increased economic vulnerability. But it's not just
parents who feel they have no other choice -- the children themselves may
feel compelled to go to earn money for their hungry families. Mujeeb said he had brought up the possibility of leaving
before with his grandmother, but she had always discouraged him, despite the
family's troubles. "There are no
earnings here," said his grandmother, who didn't want to be named.
"How do I feed the child? I told him not to go, but he left with nothing
to eat at home." The brave tender
souls Experience by Salman
Nizami, Greater www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2010/Oct/28/the-brave-tender-souls-14.asp
[accessed Oct. 29,
2010] One day I asked Aabid if he would show me his home and introduce me to
his family so I could understand his life and the life of the other street
children here. And so, awkwardly, he led me to his poor neighbourhood
Chak Dhara – Fakir gojri village. His home, like all the others in the area,
is made of mud. Aabid introduced me to his elder
brother who has not been able to work since he was injured in the Action
Against Hunger - India www.actionagainsthunger.org/countries/asia/india [accessed 21 March 2021] Although
India has shown improvement in reducing child stunting, with 46.6 million
stunted children the country is still home to over 30.9% of all stunted
children under five, the highest rate in the world. Undernutrition in India
is the product of the usual suspects: widespread poverty, endemic hunger, rapid population growth, pockets of weak governance, poor
health systems and unreliable national indicators, all of which are
compounded by issues of caste, ethnicity, religion and gender. Furthermore,
India has shown no progress with regards to six other global nutrition goals.
There is a strong need to reduce these numbers, as India still bears 23.8% of
the global burden of malnutrition. The
World Bank in India www.worldbank.org/en/country/india/overview [accessed 22 April
2021] With a
population of more than 1.2 billion, India is the world’s largest democracy.
Over the past decade, the country’s integration into the global economy has
been accompanied by economic growth. India has now emerged as a global
player. Looking
back a few years Advameg, Inc., Encyclopedia of the Nations www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/India-ECONOMY.html [accessed 25 January 2021] As of
2001, according to World Development Indicators, India had become the world's
fourth-largest economy in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, up from fifth
place in 1999. … its new fourth-place rank does reflect the country's
remarkable record of steady growth: an annual average of 6% growth since 1991
with a 10% reduction in the proportion of the population living in poverty. India's
population growth dropped below 2% for the first time in four decades, but
the growth rate for the working-age group 15 to 60 years olds continues to
accelerate presenting the government policy makers with the need to
accelerate job creation.. All
material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107
for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT
COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Prof. Martin
Patt, "Poverty - India", http://gvnet.com/poverty/India.htm,
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