Answer Writing Roadmap for the Question
1. Introduction
- Briefly define poverty and introduce the concept of multi-dimensional poverty.
- State why it is important to address multi-dimensional poverty as opposed to solely income-based measures.
2. Concept of Multi-Dimensional Poverty
- Definition: Explain what multi-dimensional poverty is and its dimensions, including living standards, education, and healthcare.
- Importance of MPI: Discuss the significance of the Multi-dimensional Poverty Index (MPI) in assessing poverty.
- Multi-dimensional approach: Use of household surveys for comprehensive data (Source: NITI Aayog, “National Multidimensional Poverty Index: Baseline Report and Dashboard”).
- Better comparison capabilities: Ability to compare poverty across different demographics and regions.
3. Measures Implemented in India
- Outline key measures taken by the Indian government to tackle multi-dimensional poverty, categorized into the three dimensions:
A. Child Mortality
- Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) and Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) promote institutional deliveries via cash incentives.
- India Newborn Action Plan (INAP) targets goals for neonatal and stillbirth rates by 2030.
- Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) provides vaccinations for children.
- Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA) ensures comprehensive antenatal care.
- Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) offers care for children aged 0-18 (Sources: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare).
B. Nutrition
- National Nutrition Mission and PM-POSHAN schemes address malnutrition.
- Introduction of Nutrition Rehabilitation Centres (NRCs) for children with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM).
- Iron and Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation to combat anemia (Sources: National Nutrition Mission).
C. Education
- Schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and Mahila Samakhya Programme enhance educational access.
- The New Education Policy 2020 aims for universal access to education at all levels (Sources: Ministry of Education).
D. Living Standards
- Swachh Bharat Abhiyan focuses on sanitation.
- Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana aims to provide housing for all.
- Swajal scheme ensures clean drinking water, and PM Ujjwala Yojana provides clean cooking fuel.
- Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (SAUBHAGYA) aims to provide electricity connections to BPL families (Sources: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs; Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation).
4. Conclusion
- Summarize the critical role of addressing multi-dimensional poverty in India.
- Highlight the need for continuous efforts and additional innovations to tackle this issue effectively, which aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 1: ending poverty in all its forms everywhere (Source: United Nations).
Multi-dimensional poverty refers to a broader understanding of poverty that encompasses various deprivations beyond just income. It includes factors such as education, health, living standards, and access to basic services. This approach recognizes that individuals can experience poverty in multiple dimensions simultaneously, affecting their overall quality of life.
In India, addressing multi-dimensional poverty has been a priority, especially given its diverse socio-economic landscape. The government has implemented several measures, including:
These measures, among others, aim to reduce poverty comprehensively, enhancing overall well-being and social inclusion in India.
Understanding Multi-Dimensional Poverty
Multi-dimensional poverty goes beyond income metrics to encompass various deprivations affecting individuals’ quality of life. This includes lack of access to education, healthcare, clean drinking water, and adequate living standards. According to the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) 2021, around 228 million Indians were considered multi-dimensionally poor, highlighting the urgency of addressing this issue.
Measures Implemented in India
India has taken several initiatives to combat multi-dimensional poverty:
Conclusion
By addressing various aspects of poverty through targeted measures, India strives to uplift the socio-economic conditions of its citizens. Continuous monitoring and adaptation of these programs are essential to ensure their effectiveness in reducing multi-dimensional poverty.
Breaking Down Multi-Dimensional Poverty: How India is Tackling It
1. Introduction
Multi-dimensional poverty goes beyond income-based poverty, addressing deprivations in health, education, and living standards. It offers a comprehensive way to measure poverty, recognizing the complexity of factors affecting individuals’ well-being.
2. Concept of Multi-Dimensional Poverty
Multi-dimensional poverty includes several aspects, such as lack of access to healthcare, education, and basic services. The Multi-dimensional Poverty Index (MPI) provides a more accurate reflection of poverty by assessing these dimensions through household data.
3. Measures Implemented in India
A. Child Mortality
Schemes like Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) promote institutional deliveries, while the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) provides vaccines to children. The India Newborn Action Plan (INAP) and Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) further reduce child mortality rates.
B. Nutrition
The National Nutrition Mission and PM-POSHAN schemes focus on reducing malnutrition. Nutrition Rehabilitation Centres (NRCs) and iron supplementation programs combat child malnutrition and anemia.
C. Education
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the New Education Policy 2020 aim to provide universal access to quality education for children.
D. Living Standard
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan improves sanitation, while Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana provides affordable housing. The Ujjwala Yojana and SAUBHAGYA schemes ensure clean cooking fuel and electricity for low-income families.
4. Conclusion
Addressing multi-dimensional poverty in India is crucial for sustainable development, requiring ongoing efforts and innovation.
According to World Bank, Multidimensional Poverty seeks to understand poverty beyond monetary deprivations by including access to education & basic infrastructure.
UNDP&Oxford developed MPI to measure such poverty-:
Measurements implemented in India to tackle this issue-:
According to PIB, 24.82 crore Indians escaped multidimensional poverty in last 9 years. Although much is done but more is required like more citizen participation, accelerating economic growth, growth of non farm employment, accelerating human resource development etc to alleviate poverty.
However, all 12 MPI indicators showed significant signs of improvement. As a result,India is likely to achieve its SDG target of halving Multidimensional Poverty before 2030.
Model Answer
Multi-Dimensional Poverty: A Comprehensive Overview
Concept of Multi-Dimensional Poverty
Multi-dimensional poverty extends beyond just income to assess deprivation across three key dimensions: living standards, education, and healthcare. This approach allows for a deeper understanding of the various challenges faced by poor individuals. The Multi-dimensional Poverty Index (MPI) provides a more effective model for identifying poverty as it utilizes data from household surveys that capture overlapping deprivations, enabling better comparisons across regions and socio-economic groups (Source: NITI Aayog, “National Multidimensional Poverty Index: Baseline Report and Dashboard”).
Measures Implemented in India
To combat multi-dimensional poverty, India has initiated a range of measures:
To successfully address multi-dimensional poverty, continuous efforts are essential, including focusing on economic growth, agricultural development, and implementing Universal Basic Income to meet Sustainable Development Goal 1: ending poverty in all forms (Source: United Nations).
Multi-dimensional poverty refers to the deprivation that individuals or households experience across multiple aspects of life, not just income. It includes factors such as poor health, lack of education, inadequate living standards, lack of access to clean water and sanitation, and exposure to violence and insecurity. The Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index (MPI), developed by the UNDP and Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, captures these broader dimensions by assessing poverty through indicators like nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, and access to basic services.
In India, significant efforts have been made to address multi-dimensional poverty. Key programs include the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which provides rural households with guaranteed wage employment. The National Food Security Act aims to ensure access to subsidized food grains for low-income families. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) focuses on providing affordable housing, while the Swachh Bharat Mission aims to improve sanitation facilities. Additionally, the Ayushman Bharat scheme provides health insurance to economically vulnerable families.
Despite these initiatives, multi-dimensional poverty remains a challenge due to issues like unequal access to resources and services, corruption, and implementation gaps. Sustained efforts are needed to ensure inclusive growth and better living conditions for all.
What is Multidimensional Poverty Measure?
It is an index used to measure the percentage of households in a country who are deprived along three dimensions: low-income status, illiteracy and lack of access to adequate infrastructure facilities. This is because it paints a whole picture of poverty by looking at other facets of poverty apart from just monetary facet.
What is Multidimensional Poverty?
A poor person might simultaneously face various disadvantages, such as bad health or malnutrition, lack of safe drinking water or electricity, bad quality of work or very little schooling.
By concentrating on only one variable, for instance, income, cannot portray the entire picture of poverty.
It refers to the measure of poverty that encompasses deprivations in education and access to basic infrastructure, other than income or consumption, based on the $2.15 international poverty line by the World Bank.
International poverty line has been set by the World Bank as USD 2.15 per day (based on 2017 purchasing power parity) for the daily purposes of measuring monetary value.
What are the Important Trends of the Multidimensional Poverty Index in India since 2005-06?
Overall Reduction in Multidimensional Poverty:
-In the case of India, it has a significant reduction from 29.17% during 2013-14 to 11.28% during 2022-23. So overall, there has been an 17.89 percentage point reduction in nine years.
-About 24.82 crore individuals escaped from multidimensional poverty over the last nine years: that is, 2013-14 to 2022-23. And this change, both statistically and in actual fact, is due to different actions by the government.
Decline at the State Level:
Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan bore the brunt of declining numbers under the MPI qualification count.
The number below the MP line in the state of Uttar Pradesh came in with the largest absolute decline at 5.94 crore, followed closely by Bihar at 3.77 crore, then at close range by Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Improvement in All Indicators:
There has been seen an improvement in all of the 12 indicators from MPI, which means health, education, and Standard of Living dimensions have fared better.
Intensity of Deprivation:
-The Severity of Deprivation (SoD) declined at a lower rate between 2015-16 and 2019-21 compared to 2005-06 and 2013-14.
-SoD measures the deprivations the average multidimensionally poor person is exposed to.
The reduction of deprivation was also greater post-2015-16 if measured by a decline in the share of MPI poor in total population during that period than for the period ten years back as there were fewer years.
In 2005-06, MPI poor constituted 55.34% of India’s total population.
SDG Target Achievement:
India is set to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Target 1.2 in good time well before 2030 to reduce “at least by half the proportion of men, women, and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions”.
Major drivers linked with the living standards dimension included a significant improvement, like lower deprivation concerning cooking fuel, sanitation facility, and access to an account at a bank or other financial institution.
Initiatives like Poshan Abhiyaan and Anemia Mukt Bharat have been instrumental in bringing major health facilities within everybody’s reach, which have helped considerably in reducing deprivation.
The Targeted Public Distribution System of National Food Security Act now reaches 81.35 crore beneficiaries for food grains supply to rural and urban population.
Some of the recent decisions like another five years of free distribution of food grains under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana prove commitment by the Government.
The maternal health schemes, Ujjwala Yojana for distribution of clean cooking fuel, electricity coverage under Saubhagya, and transformative programs like Swachh Bharat Mission and Jal Jeevan Mission, altogether have brought improvement in the living standards and wellbeing of the population.
Initiatives like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and PM Awas Yojana have been very significant towards financial inclusion and ensuring the poor get safe shelters.