Q1: What is poverty?
Ans: Poverty is a situation in which people are unable to get the minimum basic requirement of life, i.e., food, clothing, and shelter for their sustenance.
Q2: What is the poverty line?
Ans: The estimated minimum level of income needed to secure the necessities of life is called the poverty line.
Q3: Why does the poverty line vary with time and place?
Ans: It is because what is necessary to satisfy basic needs is different at different times and in different countries.
Q4: What is the accepted average calorie requirement in India?
Ans: The accepted average calorie requirement in India is 2400 calories per person per day in rural areas and 2100 calories per person per day in urban areas.
Q5: Why is the calorie requirement higher in rural areas than urban areas?
Ans: People in rural areas do more physical work. Therefore, their calorie requirement is considered to be higher than in urban areas.
Q6: What was the poverty line fixed for a person for the year 2011-12?
Ans: For the year 2011-12, the poverty line for a person was fixed at ₹816 per month for rural areas and ₹1000 for urban areas.
Q7: How is the poverty line estimated periodically?
Ans: The poverty line is estimated periodically by conducting sample surveys.
Q8: Which organization conducts sample surveys for estimating the poverty line?
Ans: National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO).
Q9: What uniform standard does the World Bank use for the poverty line?
Ans: The World Bank uses a minimum availability of the equivalent of $1 per person per day.
Q10: Name two social groups most vulnerable to poverty.
Ans: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
Q11: Name the social and economic groups that experienced a decline in poverty in the 1990s.
Ans: Scheduled castes, rural agricultural laborers, and urban casual labor households.
Q12: Which two states continue to be the poorest states in India?
Ans: Bihar and Odisha.
Q13: Name any two states that have seen a significant decline in poverty.
Ans: Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir.
Q14: What caused a substantial decline in poverty in China and Southeast Asian countries?
Ans: Rapid economic growth and massive investments in human resource development.
Q15: What does the International Poverty Line mean?
Ans: The International Poverty Line means a population living below $1 a day.
Q16: What does the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations call for?
Ans: It calls for reducing the proportion of people living on less than $1 a day to half the 1990 level by 2015.
Q17: Mention one historical reason for poverty in India.
Ans: The low level of economic development under British colonial administration.
Q18: What is the reason behind the huge income inequalities in our country?
Ans: Unequal distribution of land and other resources.
Q19: What are the two planks of the current anti-poverty strategy of the government?
Ans: Promotion of economic growth and targeted anti-poverty programs.
Q20: How does the below-expectation growth in the agriculture sector aggravate the issue of poverty?
Ans: This has a direct bearing on poverty as a large number of poor people live in villages and are dependent on agriculture.
Q21: When was the Prime Minister Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) launched?
Ans: This scheme was launched in 1993.
Q22: What is the aim of Prime Minister Rozgar Yojana?
Ans: Its aim is to create self-employment opportunities for educated unemployed youth in rural areas and small towns.
Q23: What is the aim of the Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (PMGY)?
Ans: Its aim is to give additional central assistance to states for basic services such as primary health, primary education, rural shelter, rural drinking water, and rural electrification.
Q24: Why is proper monitoring of all poverty alleviation programs necessary?
Ans: It is because the benefits of these schemes do not fully reach the deserving poor.
Q25: Mention some bigger challenges that are coming in the way of poverty alleviation.
Ans: A big section of society has failed to get healthcare, education, and jobs. The tasks of achieving gender equality and dignity for the poor still remain unfulfilled.