Chronic Poverty and Development Policy in India

Focusing on the nature and politics of chronic poverty in India, this book provides an analysis of poverty reduction policies from a chronic poverty perspective. Using quantitative and qualitative data, the volume offers an account of the major causes and consequences of chronic poverty. Among other concerns the book explores: the phenomenon of chronic poverty among rural casual labourers; the effect of involuntary displacement and relocation on marginal groups that are chronically poor; the opportunities afforded by technology for empowerment of the poor and the underprivileged; and possible ways and means to strengthen existing safety nets for the vulnerable section of India′s population.

Table of Contents:
Chronic Poverty in India - Andrew Shepherd and Aasha Kapur Mehta An Introduction Correlates of Incidence and Exit from Chronic Poverty in Rural India - Shashanka Bhide and Aasha Kapur Mehta Evidence from Panel Data Rural Casual Labourers, Wages and Poverty - Sheila Bhalla, Anup K Karan and T Shobha 1983 to 1999-2000 Extreme and Chronic Poverty and Malnutrition in India - R Radhakrishna et al Incidence and Determinants Chronic Poverty among the Indian Elderly - S Irudaya Rajan Impact of Involuntary Displacement on a Tribal Community (A Case Study of the Sahariya Adivasi Displaced from Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh) - Asmita Kabra Chronic Poverty and Gendered Patterns of Intra-Household Resource Allocation - Ratna M Sudarshan and Rina Bhattacharya A Case Study from East Delhi Political Perspectives on Chronic Poverty - N C B Nath Operationalising Multidimensional Concepts of Chronic Poverty - Aasha Kapur Mehta, Ramakrushna Panigrahi and Sashi Sivramkrishna An Exploratory Spatial Analysis Chronic Poverty in Rural Areas - P V Thomas The Role of Government Policy Technological Change in Food Production - M S Swaminathan Implications for Vulnerable Sections Safety Nets for the Chronic Poor in India - S Mahendra Dev An Overview

Review :
"In a lucid and thoughtful essay Swaminathan the role that technological progress can play in improving food security in India. This is an invaluable contribution in that it goes beyond the purely technological aspects of the problem to analyze the societal and institutional reforms necessary to sustain food security. The book is an important contribution to our understanding of chronic poverty and should be read those interested in the topic."

[The book] is a multifaceted intellectual masterpiece that discovers various issues confined to the chronic poverty in India—the nature and magnitude; the politics; the spatial aspects; and finally, the issue of food security, agriculture and safety nets… this is an innovative and thought-provoking textbook that caries enough substance for students, researchers, policymakers and development practitioners alike who are committed to working on chronic poverty in third world countries in general and India in particular.

This volume is of immense value and addresses key policy issues from an entirely fresh perspective. These researchers illustrate how to go about mapping of rural context for checking the relevance development interventions that could reach the chronic poor.

The book is a very comprehensive and relevant for researchers and policy makers. It gives an in-depth account of chronic poverty and various development policies in India, and provides some useful suggestions and policy recommendations to tackle the various dimensions of poverty. This book should serve as an important resource as it provides a wealth of information about existing persistent poverty situation in India…