E Chapter 3
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And: Poverty is a condition in which a person lacks financial resources and essentials for a minimum
standard of living.
Q.2. What is the poverty line?
And: The poverty line is the minimum income or consumption level required to meet basic necessities
like food, clothing, and shelter.
Q.3. Who conducts poverty estimation in India?
And: The NITI Aayog (earlier Planning Commission) and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)
estimate poverty in India.
Q.5. Which states in India have the highest poverty rates?
And: Bihar, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand have high poverty rates.
Q.6. Mention three causes of poverty in India.
And: Major causes of poverty in India are as follows-
1. The low growth rate of economic development is main cause of poverty.
2. Population explosion is also a major reason of poverty.
3. Corruption is also main reason of poverty.
4. Many social and cultural and economic factors are responsible for poverty.
5. Unequal distribution of resources is a major reason of poverty.
Q.7. What is the role of education in reducing poverty?
And: Education improves skills, increases employment opportunities, and enhances income levels,
helping people escape poverty.
Q.8. What is BPL?
Ans. It is line to measure the poverty in India. It means Below Poverty Line.In India, a person is
considered below poverty line if he is not getting 2400 calories in rural areas 2100 calories in urban
areas.In year 2000 if family was earning below 1640 Rs per month in rural areas and 2270 Rs in per
month in urban areas, it was called living below poverty line.
Q.9. Who are the poorest of the poor?
Ans. There is also inequality of incomes within a family.In poor families all suffer, but some suffer
more than others. Women, elderly people and female infants are systematically denied equal access to
resources available to the family. Therefore women, children and old people are poorest of the poor.
Q.10. Describe the poverty trend in India.
Ans. 1. There is substantial decline in poverty ratios in India from about 45 percent in 1993-94 to 37.2
percent in 2004-05.
2. The proportion of people below poverty line further came down to about 21.9 percent in 2011-12.
3. If the trend continues, people below poverty line may come down to less than 20% in the next few
years.
4. Although the percentage of people living under poverty line decline in the earlier two decades (1973-
1993).
5. The number of poor declined from 407.1 million in 2004-05 to 269.3 million in 2011-12 with an
average annual decline of 2.2 percentage points during 2004-05 to 2011-12.
Q.11. Write a short note on NREGA 2005.
Ans. 1. Presently it is known as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005.
2. It aims to provide 100 days of wage employment to every household to ensure livelihood security in
rural areas.
3. It also aimed at sustainable development to address the cause of draught, deforestation and soil
erosion.
4. One third of the proposed jobs have been reserved for women.
5. The scheme provided employment to 220 crore person day of employment to 4.78 crore households.
Q.12. Explain -
Ans. A) Prime Manister Rozgar Yozana -
is another scheme which was started in 1993. The aim of this program is to create self employment
opportunities for educated unemployment opportunities for educated unemployed youth in rural areas
and small town.They are helped in setting up small business and industries.
B) Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yozana -
It stands for Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yozana. It was launched in 1999.The program aims at
bringing the assisted poor families above the poverty line by organizing them into self help groups
through a mix of bank credit and government subsidy.
C) Pradhan Mantra Gramodaya Yozana -
It stands for Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yozana.It was launched in 2000.Additional central assistance is
given to states for basic services such as primary health, primary education, rural shelter, rural drinking
water and rural electrification.
D) Antyodaya Anna Yozana -
It stands for Antyodaya Anna Yozana.It was launched in December 2000.Under the scheme one crore of
the poorest among the BPL families covered under the targeted public distribution system were
identified.Poor families were identified and rice and wheat is given to them at very less rates.
