"Poverty alleviation programmes in India remain mere showpieces until and unless they are backed up by…

Question

"Poverty alleviation programmes in India remain mere showpieces until and unless they are backed up by political will." Discuss with reference to the performance of the major poverty alleviation programmes in India.

Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

Poverty programmes in India have succeeded where political will was matched by delivery capacity and community oversight, and stayed showpieces where it was not. Chhattisgarh's PDS reform cut leakages sharply, while the Shanta Kumar Committee (2015) estimated that 46% of PDS grain leaked nationally.

**Introduction**

In 1985 Rajiv Gandhi admitted that only 15 paise of every rupee meant for the poor reached them. The same programme has since succeeded in some states and stayed a showpiece in others, largely because of political will.

**Performance Where Political Will Was Strong**

1. **Chhattisgarh PDS**: From 2004 the state took ration shops from private dealers and computerised supply, cutting leakages to among the lowest in India.
2. **MGNREGA and SHGs**: Andhra Pradesh's social audits kept the job guarantee honest, the scheme gave a record 389 crore person-days in 2020-21, and DAY-NRLM has organised about 10 crore women into SHGs.
3. **DBT outcomes**: Over ₹53 lakh crore moved through DBT since 2013, and NITI Aayog estimates multidimensional poverty fell from 29.17% (2013-14) to 11.28% (2022-23).

**Performance Where Programmes Became Showpieces**

1. **Leakage**: The Shanta Kumar Committee (2015) estimated 46% of PDS grain leaked, and IRDP loans in the 1980s were often written off at election time.
2. **Funding and exclusion**: The Supreme Court in Swaraj Abhiyan (2018) censured delayed MGNREGA wages, and Santoshi Kumari's hunger death in Jharkhand (2017) showed that technology without grievance redress excludes the poorest.

SKETCH: matrix | Will and Capacity Decide Outcomes
cols: Strong will | Weak will
rows: Strong capacity | Weak capacity
tl: Durable results
tr: Routine delivery
bl: Leaky ambition
br: Showpiece schemes

**Way Forward**

1. **Credible funding**: Pay MGNREGA wages within a fortnight and budget for real demand.
2. **Community oversight**: Make social audits statutory everywhere, following Meghalaya's 2017 law, and track district outcomes publicly.

**Conclusion**

Political will is necessary but not sufficient: joined with capacity, funds and community oversight, it turns schemes into lifelines and carries India towards SDG 1.

"Poverty alleviation programmes in India remain mere showpieces until and unless they are backed up by political will." Discuss with reference to the performance of the major poverty alleviation programmes in India.

Model answer

Practise this question

Poverty4 questions

Ghissu