The deprivation of access to food and shelter in India and examines whether these deprivations have increased or decreased during the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime. It provides insights into the lack of real income to buy food and rent or buy a house, and highlights the growing disparities between the rich and the poor. The film "Roti, Kapada Aur Makaan" depicted the severe deprivation and devastation faced by a man living honestly.
Deprivation, such as undernourishment, can have long-term effects on individuals, including poor cognition, low wages, and higher risk of chronic diseases.
The objective of the article is to examine whether deprivations like lack of food and shelter have increased or decreased during the NDA regime.
Starvation is caused by a lack of entitlements/real income to buy food, and lack of shelter is due to a lack of real income to rent or buy a house.
The Gallup World Poll Survey for India focuses on a lack of money to buy food and rent or buy a house.
The period covered in the study is 2018 to 2021.
Despite claims of growing affluence and a reduction in the Multidimensional Poverty Index, there is pervasive and growing deprivation of access to food and shelter in India.
The article highlights the issue of lack of money for food and shelter among respondents.
In 2018, 40.2% of respondents reported not having enough money for food, which increased to 48% in 2021.
Similarly, in 2018, 34.7% of respondents reported not having enough money for shelter, which increased to 44.3% in 2021.
The highest proportion of those without enough money for food and shelter is among the poorest, while the lowest proportion is among the richest.
In 2021, nearly 22% of the poorest lacked enough money to buy food, while only 14% of the richest experienced this deprivation.
A similar pattern is observed for the lack of money for shelter, with over 20% of the poorest lacking money for shelter compared to over 15% among the richest.
The article suggests that income growth has been sluggish and has not benefited the poorest.
The focus on infrastructural projects and neglect of agriculture and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, along with weakening social safety nets, are contributing factors to the lack of income growth for the poorest.
The article does not mention any specific information about the caste factor.
OBCs had the highest proportion of people lacking money for food in 2018 (34.2%), followed by SCs (32.3%) and Unreserved (23.6%).
Between 2018 and 2021, the share of OBCs lacking money for food declined to 31.5%, while the share of Unreserved increased to 30.8%.
SCs had the highest share of people lacking money for shelter in 2018 (32.5%), followed by OBCs (31.6%) and Unreserved (23.9%).
The share of SCs lacking money for shelter decreased, while the share of OBCs slightly increased and the share of Unreserved surged.
The highest share of people lacking money for food and shelter was among those between 25 to 45 years old in 2021.
Low wages/salaries are believed to constrain expenditure on food and shelter.
There is a contrast between rural and urban areas in terms of deprivation, but the article does not provide specific details.
Over 80% of those lacking money for food are in rural areas, while less than 20% are in urban areas.
The rural-urban contrast is also observed in the deprivation of shelter, with a majority of those lacking money for shelter being in rural areas.
The COVID-19 pandemic may lead to a resumption of rural-urban migration in search of better employment, potentially leading to greater urban deprivations.
The Public Distribution System, aimed at mitigating the failure in promoting industrial and agricultural growth and employment, has not had a significant effect on access to food.
The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana has reduced deprivation of shelter, but the economic impact has been small.
High trust in the NDA government, driven by Hindutva, centralization, and a personality cult, has aggravated deprivations of food and shelter.
Reversal to protectionist policies, politically determined location of mega projects, and granting of lucrative contracts to a few "loyal" investors are major policy aberrations.
Neglect of employment generating activities and weakening of social safety nets, along with irregularities in their funding, may have disastrous consequences for the polity and the economy.
Comments