Economics & Urban Sociology

Assignment

(Urban Sociology)

“Poverty & Homelessness”

Submitted by: -Bhagvan Singh Mukhraiya2016Murp020

Submitted to: -Assis. Professor Palouse N.K

School of Planning & Architecture, Bhopal

The Census of India 2011 defines 'houseless household' as,'households who do not live in buildings or census houses but live in the open on roadside, pavements, under flyovers and staircases, or in the open in places of worship, mandaps, railway platforms, etc.'.

Homelessness- What is it?

Who are Homeless?A homeless person is defined into three categories: In general it is said about an individual who lacks afixed, regular, andadequate night time residence; and an individual who has a primarynight time residence that is:1. A publicly supervised or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodation (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill)2. An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or

According to the 2011 Census, there were 1.77 million homeless people in India, or 0.15% of the country's total population

3. A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

Homelessness in IndiaWith a population of well over 1 billion people, India is the second most populous nation in the world. According to UN-HABITAT, India is home to 63% of all slum dwellers in South Asia. This amounts to 170 million people, 17% of the world’s slum dwellers. India’s per capita income, although rising, rank’s it 124th in the world. This low per capita income is one factor that marks the sharp divide between India’s wealthiest and poorest citizens. Approximately 35 % of India’s 260 million people As India continues to grow in economic stature, there’s much debate over the country’s ability to tackle poverty and urban homelessness. Census 2001 reported that 78 million people across India were living without a home, many in overcrowded urban environments.

Factors Contributing to HomelessnessA wide array of factors contributes to homelessness, but they can be thought of as falling into one of two categories: structural problems and individual factors that increase vulnerability.

Structural problems Lack of affordable housing Changes in the industrial economy leading to unemployment Inadequate income supports The de-institutionalization of patients with ment al health problems and the erosion of family and social support. Factors that increase an individual’s vulnerability - Physical or mental illness - Disability -Substance abuse -Domestic violence -Job loss

According to the 2011 Census, there were 1.77 million homeless people in India, or 0.15% of the country's total population

Poverty In India

Poverty is one of the most attention-able situations of any country. Poverty means living the life below the poverty line.Poverty is one of the main issues, attracting the attention of sociologists and economists. Poverty is starvation.

Poverty is loss of refuge. Poverty is not gaining access to school and no

longer knowing a way to examine. Poverty isn't always having a job, is fear for

the destiny, residing at some point at a time.

Poverty is dropping a child to contamination brought approximately by unclean water.

Poverty is powerlessness, loss of

representation and freedom.

What is Poverty?

Poverty in urban India: Just like most of the growing and developing countries, there has been continuous increase in Urban population.Poor people migrate from rural areas to cities and towns in search of employment/financial activity.The income of more than 8 crore urban people is estimated to fall below poverty line (BPL).In addition to this, there are around 4.5 crore urban people whose income level is on borderline of poverty level.A income of urban poor's is highly unstable. A large number of them are either casual workers or self-employed.Banks and Financial institutions are reluctant to provide them loan because of the unstable income.Five states that constitutes around 40% of all urban poor people of India are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh.Around 35% of the total population of the four metro cities (Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai) consists of slum population.A large portion of people living in slums are illiterate.The initiatives taken to deal with the problem of urban poverty has not yielded the desired results.

Poverty in rural India: It is said that rural India is the heart of India. In reality, the life of people living in rural areas is marked with severe poverty. Inspite of all the efforts, the condition of poor villagers is far from satisfactory. The report on Socio-economic and Caste Census (2011) reveal the following facts:SCST: Of all the rural households, around 18.46 percent belongs to scheduled castes, and around 10.97 belongs to scheduled Tribes.Major source of income: Manual causal labour jobs and cultivation are the major sources of income for rural people. Nearly 51 percent of all households are economically engaged in manual casual labour and nearly 30 percent of them is engaged in cultivation.Deprived: Around 48.5 percent of rural households are deprived according to the census.Income Tax: Only 4.58 percent of rural households pay income tax.Land ownership: Around 56 percent of village households doesn’t own a land.Size of rural houses: The houses of around 54 percent rural families consists of either one or two-rooms. Out of them, around 13 percent lives in a one-room house.

Causes of povertyThe main cause of poverty is illiteracy. India is a rural country and villages are not yet developed in India; especially women are unable to get education. Second main cause of poverty is the population which is increasing day by day and India ranks on second number in this line and I would say that the population is the major problem and the root cause for any nation to be poor. China has world’s highest population but they are now putting a check on the growing population and also, their land area is also very huge as compared to India. In a poor nation, middle class is also unable to fulfill all their requirements as compared to high society.The growing population inflates the problem of poor techniques used in Agriculture. Further, there is unequal distribution of wealth. As a result, the poor people are often exploited by the wealthy community. The most important causes of Poverty in India are poor agriculture, growing Population, gap between rich and poor, corruption and black money.

Poor agriculture: India is mainly an agricultural country. About 80% people of our country depend on agriculture. But our agriculture is in a bad way. Farmers are poor and uneducated. They do not know the modern methods of farming. They have no good facilities of irrigation. They do not get seeds and fertilizers in time. Thus, the yield is poor. Agriculture is not profitable today. We face the shortage of food. We have to import it. So, poor agriculture is one of the causes of India’s poverty.

Gap between the rich and the poor: The widening gap between the rich and the poor is also responsible for India’s poverty. The rich are growing richer. The poor are growing poorer. This economic gap between the two must be reduced. Our social system should be changed. The poor people must get all help to reap the fruits of Independence.

Corruption and black-money: There are corruptions in every walk of life. There is inefficiency in offices. People have become selfish. They neglect the national interests. Black money causes the problem of rising prices. Some people have all the privileges. But many others are suffering. Black money affects our economy. It causes poverty.

Effects of poverty1.Illiteracy: Poor people constitutes greater share of illiterate population. Education becomes extremely difficult when people are deprived of basic necessities of life.

2.Child Labor: In India, a large number of young boys and girls are engaged in child labour.

3.Nutrition and diet: Poverty is the leading cause of insufficient diet and inadequate nutrition. The resources of poor people are very limited, and its effect can be seen in their diet.

4.Poor living condition and Housing problems: The don’t get proper living conditions. They have to fight the hardship of poverty to secure food, clothes and shelter. A large number of poor families live in houses with one room only.

5.Unemployment: Poor people move from villages to towns and form one town to another in search of employment/work. Since, they are mostly

illiterate and un-skilled, there are very few employment opportunities open for them. Due to unemployment, many poor people are forced to live an unfulfilled life.

6. Hygiene and sanitation: These people have little knowledge about hygiene and proper sanitation system. They are not aware of the harmful consequences of not maintaining proper hygiene. The government is taking initiatives to make available clean and safe water, and proper sanitation system to them.

7. Feminization of poverty: Women are the worst victims of poverty. Poverty effects greater number of women then men. The total of poor women outnumbers the total population of poor men. The causes include low income, gender-inequality, etc. They are deprived of proper-diet, medicines and health treatment.

Social tensions: Poverty is often characterized with income disparity and unequal distribution of national wealth between the rich and the poor.

As per the Tendulkar methodology for 2011-12, the poverty line was Rs 816 in rural areas and Rs 1,000 in urban areas, which if calculated on a daily basis come out at Rs 27 per day in rural areas and Rs 33 in urban areas.

Impact of Homelessness Living on the street makes homeless people more vulnerable to abuse. Over the last decade, there have been more than 600 attacks against homeless people, says the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty. Homeless people have been brutally attacked with baseball bats, chains and other weapons. Women have been raped.Being without a home takes a terrible toll on children. Homeless children have higher rates of ear infections, stomach problems and asthma than other children their age. They are also more likely to be depressed, anxious, or withdrawn, and have more difficulty in school than their peers.Homeless adults are also at greater risk for serious health conditions. Exposure to the elements and unsanitary living conditions can lead to frostbite, leg ulcers and upper respiratory infections. Serious illnesses like HIV/AIDS, diabetes and tuberculosis are more common in homeless people than among the general population.

Estimated Number of Homeless People in Different Cities across India•Delhi: 150,000 - 200,000•Chennai: 40,000 - 50,000•Mumbai: 200,000 (including Navy Mumbai)•Vishakhapatnam: 18,000•Bangalore: 40,000 - 50,000•Hyderabad: 60,000•Ahmedabad: 100,000•Patna: 25,000•Kolkata: 150,000•Lucknow: 19,000•Madhya Pradesh: 140000-150000

Source: Census 2011

Percentage Share of Houseless Population among States/UTs INDIA

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