One-third of world's poor in India: Survey

India is home to roughly one-third of all poor people in the world. It also has a higher proportion of its population living on less than $2 per day than even sub-Saharan Africa.

That is the sobering news coming out of the World Bank's latest estimates on global poverty. The fine print of the estimates also shows that the rate of decline of poverty in India was faster between 1981 and 1990 than between 1990 and 2005. This is likely to give fresh ammunition to those who maintain that economic reforms, which started in 1991, have failed to reduce poverty at a faster rate.

India, according to the new estimates, had 456 million people or about 42% of the population living below the new international poverty line of $1.25 per day. The number of Indian poor also constitute 33% of the global poor, which is pegged at 1.4 billion people.

India also had 828 million people, or 75.6% of the population living below $2 a day. Sub-Saharan Africa, considered the world's poorest region, is better — it has 72.2% of its population (551m) people below the $2 a day level.

The estimates are based on recently recalculated purchasing power parity (PPP) exchange rates, which makes comparisons across countries possible. The dollar exchange rates being referred to here, therefore, are not the ones used in normal exchange rates.

While the full report has not yet been released, a briefing note sent by the Bank had some of the data and showed that the poverty rate — those below $1.25 per day — for India had come down from 59.8% in 1981 to 51.3% by 1990 or 8.5 percentage points over nine years. Between 1990 and 2005, it declined to 41.6%, a drop of 9.7 percentage points over 15 years, clearly a much slower rate of decline.

An FAQ on the new estimates, also provided by the Bank, however states, "India has maintained even progress against poverty since the 1980s, with the poverty rate declining at a little under one percentage point per year."

India's Current Scenario

This Article best describes country's scenario today!!!!

By

Suhas Godan

Really a class analogy..
An Old Story:

The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and
laying up supplies for the winter.

The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool and laughs & dances & plays the
summer away.

Come winter, the Ant is warm and well fed. The Grasshopper has no food or
shelter so he dies out in the cold.

Indian Version:
The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and
laying up supplies for the winter.

The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the
summer away.

Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and
demands to know why the Ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed
while others are cold and starving.
NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering Grasshopper
next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled
with food.

The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor
Grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house.

Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that
Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter ..

Mayawati states this as `injustice' done on Minorities.

Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for
not upholding the fundamental rights of the Grasshopper.

The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the
Grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt
support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance)

Opposition MPs stage a walkout. Left parties call for 'Bengal Bandh' in
West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry.

CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard
in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and
Grasshoppers.

Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway
Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.

Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the ' Prevention of Terrorism
Against Grasshoppers Act' [POTAGA], with effect from the beginning of the
winter.

Arjun Singh makes 'Special Reservation ' for Grasshoppers in Educational
Institutions & in Government Services.

The Ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and having nothing left
to pay his retroactive taxes,it's home is confiscated by the Government
and handed over to the Grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.

Arundhati Roy calls it ' A Triumph of Justice'.

Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice '.

CPM calls it the ' Revolutionary Resurgence of the Downtrodden '

Koffi Annan invites the Grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly.

Many years later...
The Ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar
company in Silicon Valley,

100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere
in India,
...AND

As a result of loosing lot of hard working Ants and feeding the grasshoppers,
..
..
.. .
India is still a developing country…!!!

3-yr-old sold for Rs 50?

REWARI: To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Can anybody remember when the times were not hard, and money not scarce?"
What happens when a poor mother parts from her children as she is unable to afford one decent meal a day for them?

Does the earth split wide open or do the heavens cry? Odds are that words like 'inflation' and 'consumerism' would be thrown at her. But that's no respite for Kanta Devi from Rewari, as desperate times might have forced her to go the desperate way.

Having exhausted all the savings on the treatment of her husband Shankar Bahadur, who is suffering from tuberculosis and admitted to the civil hospital, Kanta was clearly going through extremely trying circumstances. On Sunday, a vernacular daily reported that the mother sold off her young daughter Una to a neighbour in exchange of Rs 6,000 and gave away her three-year-old son in adoption for merely Rs 50!

Though the district administration has dismissed these reports following a preliminary enquiry, a probe has been marked to the additional deputy commissioner.

Not too long ago, there were reports of how a debt-ridden man in Yamunanagar had no alternative but to sell off his 13-year-old daughter. And, they say, Haryana is a prosperous state.

In Kanta's case, the district administration has promised to help the family and also ensure free treatment for her husband. Deputy commissioner Chander Prakash claimed the family had been extended Rs 20,000 as financial assistance by the Red Cross Society. In addition, the family would be provided with an accommodation, the DC added.

"Kanta Devi has maintained she married off her daughter with her neighbour Sharda's son and that her three-year-old son was adopted," the officer said.

However, sources say while there is no proof of Uma's wedding, the procedure for the young boy's adoption too was not followed. Dismissing the allegations of Kanta 'mortgaging' her daughter and selling off her son, the DC said her daughter had maintained she was staying with the neighbour's family on her own will and they had also contacted the Gurgaon woman, who was reportedly ready to return the boy.

Child Labour - India's work force with tears in their eye

Peeing in public is a favorite hobby in India - Tourist Attraction

Cows in India - They are everywhere - can stall anything on its way!