Poverty as a Challenge
Question: Explain about poverty mainly seen by the social scientists. (Poverty As a Challenge)
Answer: Generally poverty means a condition or state of the people. Due to lack of resources the conditions of the people become very bad or poor.
But this poverty meaning is something different to the social scientists. According to the social scientists poverty there are some social indicators to indicate poverty. For example lack of job opportunity, illiteracy, malnutrition, lack of health facilities, lack of safe drinking water or sanitation etc. are the indicators of poverty.
Question: What do you mean by poverty line?
Answer: Poverty line is the method to indicate or measure poverty status of the people. This is the level to fulfill the basic needs of the people. Poverty line generally varies from time to time or place to place. For example who cannot buy a car in United States of America he/she is considered as poor. But in the case of India, who can own a car he/she is considered as a luxury.
In the case on poverty line in India, basic things to live like food, shelter, lights, fuels, medical facilities etc. are the main indicators.
Question: Who are the vulnerable in respect to poverty?
Answer: In Indian society some communities are identified as vulnerable people. For example schedule castes, schedule tribes are in this vulnerable group of poverty. Here poor rural people also considered as below poverty line. For example rural agricultural laborers are in this group.
Question: What are the main causes of inter-state disparities of poverty?
Answer: There are so many reasons of inter-state disparities or differences of poverty. Like education, social consciousness, technological development, health facilities, environmental awareness etc. may be taken under of these inter-state disparities of poverty. For example Kerala is considered as developed state where literacy rate is very high. But Bihar is considered as less developed state where the literacy rate is very low.
