Poverty is a century old problem of India. The history of poverty in India is marked by significant events and shifts: From the late 19th century through the early 20th century, under the British Raj, poverty in India intensified, peaking in the 1920s [1]. Famines and diseases killed millions in multiple vicious cycles throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries [1]. After India's independence in 1947, there was little progress in reducing poverty until the mid-1970sThe poverty levels were high, with the incidence of poverty being 55% in 1973 [1, 2].  By 2004, the incidence of poverty fell quite sharply from 55% in 1973 to under 28% [1, 2].

Recently different poverty alleviation programs are getting implemented by Government. The government has launched various programs and schemes to provide basic amenities to poor households. Key Initiatives include Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Housing for All and Start-Up India and Stand-Up India [3]. India has made significant strides in poverty alleviation. According to the World Bank, India lifted 90 million people out of poverty between 2011 and 2015 [3]. More recently, 24.82 crore Indians escaped multidimensional poverty in the last nine years [3]. The poverty headcount ratio declined from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23 [1]. Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh recorded the largest decline in the number of multidimensionally poor people between 2013-14 and 2022-23[3].

As a result of these efforts, India is likely to achieve its Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of halving multidimensional poverty well before 2030 [4]. 

Addressing the social problems like poverty is not only the duty of Government. Industry, individuals and social welfare organizations should come in support of Government to solve this multi-dimensional problem.  

This publisher is a signatory and a proud member of SDG Publishers Compact, an initiative by the United Nations (https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sdg-publishers-compact/).

This publisher, as a supporter of poverty alleviation program of Government and to support SDG Publishers Compact (an initiative by the United Nations), partially helped to arrange Blanket distribution program in Nadia district of West Bengal, India in association with Ramakrishna Mission (Nabadwip Branch), a famous social welfare organization. Approximately 82 poor persons were benefitted from this program. This organization, with its limited resources, is delighted to be part of Government and UN’s goal of poverty alleviation.

References

1. Poverty in India - Wikipedia (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_India)
2. POVERTY IN INDIA 1951-1994: TRENDS AND DECOMPOSITIONS - The World Bank (Source: https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/253831468049773494/pdf/900360WP0Pover00Box385299B00PUBLIC0.pdf) 

3. 24.82 crore Indians escape Multidimensional Poverty in last 9 years. (Source: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1996271)
4. 13.5 crore Indians escape Multidimensional Poverty in 5 years. (Source: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1940125)