Question

Describe the government initiatives of poverty elevation.

Answer 1

The poverty alleviation programmes in Indiacan 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. The programmes can be mainly grouped into 1) Wage employment programmes 2) Self-employment programmes 3) Food security programmes 4) Social security programmes 5) Urban poverty alleviation programmes.

The five year plans immediately after independence tried to focus on poverty alleviation through sectoral programmes. The first five-year plan focused on agricultural production as a way of addressing poverty while second and third plans focused on massive state led investments for employment generation in public sector. While these policies did some policy generation, they did not have enough strength to effect a sweeping effect.