Poverty is a social phenomenon in which certain sections of the society are unable to fulfill even the bare necessities of life.There can be various reasons for it.Some are natural and out of our control.However most of the reasons can be eliminated through our efforts.

Causes of Poverty

i)High population growth
Fast growing population has reduced the per capita income of our country.Hence the standard of living has also fallen considerably.If the country is overpopulated a large part of the income is spent on consumption and very little is saved for developmental activities.

ii)Unemployment
This is the basic reason why most of the rural people are poor.Many of our countrymen do not have a proper job to sustain themselves and their families.Hence they remain poor and cannot repay the loans taken by them.

iii)Inflation
The income earned by the poor people is insufficient to buy them the basic necessities of life and get them even two meals a day.Due to the lack of nutrition they are unable to do any physical work and hence they remain poor.The prices of basic food items are so high due to high rate of inflation that the little income earned by them is just insufficient.

iv)Underutilization of Natural Resources
India is blessed with the plenty of natural resources but we are unlucky as we cannot them properly.The rural areas are blessed with forests and wildlife but they are not aware of the proper ways of exploiting theme .Hence the productivity of forests decreases over time.Also we do not have sufficient capital and technology to exploit them properly.

v)Backwardness of Agriculture
India is an agricultural economy.About 60% of our working population depends on agriculture directly or indirectly.But the pressure on land has increased so much that productivity of land has decreased over time.Hence the agriculture has failed to respond to the needs of time as it cannot provide employment to the growing population which results in poverty.Also the small farmers produces enough for self consumption and very little is left for sale in the market.

vi)Social Causes
The social setup of our country is still backward.There are many traditions which do not allow fast development of our society.For example dowry system tends to make a person poor as he is forced to sell off his lands and property to satisfy the greed of his daughter's fiancée.

vii)Political Causes
In India, all the developmental plans are guided by the selfish interests of the politicians.They exploit the weaker sections of our society.

Suitable Measures

i)Employment opportunities
Poverty can be eliminated if the poor people are given the jobs according to their needs and talents.Self employment can also be provided to them.Government can set up institutions which trains them in some practices and skills.

ii)Establishment of Small Scale Industries
Government should develop cottage, handicrafts and other small scale industries to in the backward regions of our country.Moreover this will transfer resources from the areas of surplus to the deficit solving the problem of urbanization.

iii)Education
Government should take steps to spread awareness for education so that the people do not have to depend on others for their income.They can also protect themselves from exploitation by the greedy traders.

iv)Reduce Inflation
Inflation tends to make poor poorer and rich richer.There should be a stability in the price level of the country.Government should also reduce the burden of tax on the poor and charge more on the richer class.Rationing should be promoted so that the poor people get the basic necessities if life at lower price level.

v)Check Population growth
Much of the problem of poverty can be solved if the population of the country can be reduced to a average level.This will make developmental plans successful and the poor people will have a greater share in the funds of the government.

vi)Proper Utilization of Resources
Resources of the country should be utilized properly so that we can have the benefits of those free gifts of nature.

vii)Uplift of Agriculture
Agriculture is the backbone of our country.It provides income to vast number of people.Hence the government should also concentrate on it and not only on the industries.

SOCIAL GLARING POVERTY IS NETHER DESIRABLE NOR TOLERABLE.WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER TO ELIMINATE THIS SOCIAL EVIL SO THAT WE DO NOT SEE A SINGLE BEGGAR ON THE STREETS IN THE FUTURE.

Causes of poverty and measures to reduce it.

Causes of Poverty

Suitable Measures

Post Comment: