View source for Poverty in India

'''[[Poverty]] in India''' is an issue that has been important in India however the population of those in poverty has started to decrease.

The Government of India says that the [[poverty line]] for [[rural]] areas is '''₹ 816''' per month and '''₹ 1000''' per month in [[urban]] areas. This means that many people do not have enough [[money]]. India's proposed but not yet adopted official poverty line is ₹972 (US$14) a month in rural areas or ₹1,407 (US$21) a month in cities.

In [[India]], the average [[calorie]] requirement of an average man is 2400 calories per day in [[Rural area]] and 2100 calories per day in [[Urban area]].
[[File:Disabled beggar.jpg|thumb|Beggar with a Zimmer Frame, [[Karnataka]], 2023]]
In 2012, the latest report by the Planning Commission of India (Tendulkar Committee) reported that 26% of all people in India fall below the international poverty line of US$1.25 per day. Over the last decade, poverty has been witnessed a consistent decline with the levels dropping from 37.2% in 2004-05 to 29.8% in 2009-10. The number of poor people is now estimated at 250 million.

== Analysis ==
[[Image:Mumbai-street-kids.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Street children in India selling snacks and drinks to bus passengers]]

In 1947 the average income in India was similar to [[South Korea]]. South Korea became a developed country by the 2000s, but India did not.

For the first 40 years, India followed the [[Soviet]]-style economic planning, nationalization programs and government ownership of industry. Its economic growth averaged about 3.5%, while Asian economies such as South Korea grew on average more than twice that rate annually.<ref>Swaminathan S. Anklesaria Aiyar  [http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/dbp4.pdf Socialism kills - the human cost of delayed economic reform in India], Cato Institute (21 October 2009)</ref><ref>Ray S.C. 2002. Did India's economic reforms improve efficiency and productivity? ''Indian Economic Review'', '''37''', 1, pp. 23-57.</ref> Adjusted for population growth in India, its  income per head grew at 1.49% annually, while incomes of South Koreans - rich and poor - rose rapidly.

India's Soviet-style economy included the "Licence Raj": the elaborate [[licence]]s, regulations and [[red tape]] needed to set up and run a business in [[India]] between 1947 and 1990.<ref>Overstreet 1958. Soviet and communist policy in India. ''Journal of Politics'', '''20'''(1), pp. 187-202.</ref><ref>[http://www.swaminomics.org/articles/20011125_streethawking.htm Street hawking promise jobs in future], ''[[The Times of India]]'', 25 November 2001 [https://web.archive.org/web/20080329023451/http://www.swaminomics.org/articles/20011125_streethawking.htm] |date=29 March 2008</ref> The License Raj was a result of India's decision to have a [[planned economy]], where all aspects of the economy are controlled by the state. Licences were only given to a select few. [[Corruption]] flourished under this system.<ref>Kumar 2003. Corruption and human rights: promoting transparency in governance and the fundamental right to corruption-free service in India. ''Columbia Journal of Asian Law'', '''17''', 31</ref><ref name="astaire">[http://www.ukibc.com/ukindia2/files/India60.pdf The India Report] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114195859/http://www.ukibc.com/ukindia2/files/India60.pdf |date=2009-01-14 }}, Astaire Research</ref> Under this system, the country created few jobs and little wealth. Widespread poverty remained.<ref>Thakur 1993. Restoring India's economic health. ''Third World Quarterly'', '''14'''(1), 137-157</ref>

{{quote|The labyrinthine bureaucracy often led to absurd restrictions – up to 80 agencies had to be satisfied before a firm could be granted a licence to produce and the state would decide what was produced, how much, at what price and what sources of capital were used.|BBC<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/55427.stm India: the economy]. Published in 1998 by [[BBC]].</ref>}}

== References ==
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[[Category:Economy of India]]
[[Category:Poverty]]