Page 49 - Annual Report

economy have been seen. In addition, the Pew
Research Survey indicates a significant increase in
the newly poor category, showing that there is
imminent danger of people permanently slipping
back below the poverty line, primarily due to
healthcare-related expenditure. As is observed
across varied geographies, poor households, without
a strong social safety net, are stuck in a cycle of
poverty arising from small shocks that can negate
improved profitability from agriculture and
All hands up: Women participating at a community meeting allied work.
The Trusts’ Rural Upliftment Portfolio has grown
Overview around a central theme of community
strengthening and growth. At the core of the
According to the Planning Commission’s last official Assessing the landholding pattern of the rural portfolio are integrated, community-based
estimates of Poverty in 2011-12, the level of poverty economy, it is observed that nearly 70% of farmers interventions that strive to improve rural incomes
as estimated by the Tendulkar Committee’s today are marginal farmers ( < 1 hectare holding) through improved farming practices, water
approach stands at 21.92% of the overall population . and another 17% are small farmers (holding 1-2 management, soil conservation, livestock and
1
In today’s numbers, these translate to hectares). This indicates a highly fragmented animal husbandry, market linkages, crafts, etc.
approximately 300 million living below the landholding pattern, which coupled with the fact Working closely with locally influential stakeholders,
poverty line. that these farmers usually have minimal access to including relevant government departments, civil
In a country as diverse as India, poverty eradication resources, little or no technology reach and limited society and market influencers, is part of the process.
in the long run, will always be a challenge. access to dependable markets, will result in Most rural development interventions of the Trusts
non-productive returns from their fields. This usually
Even with the improvement of scores for several translates to the next generation being poorer than are implemented through either their associate
states over the years, there are pockets of poverty in the previous one, rendering them perpetually stuck organisations, which are spread across the poorest
several parts of the country. While there are several in a chronic poverty loop. Furthermore, according to regions of the country, or select partner
factors why rural households get stuck in the the National Food Security Act 2013, 90 million organisations which bring innovations and ideas to
poverty loop, the main reason still remains the households are Antyodaya families with no assets, the table. As mentioned above, collaborations with
dependence on monsoonal agriculture for food no land and no assured means of subsistence central, state and local governments, as well as with
security and basic income. Such households stretch support, leaving them deeper in poverty over time, the corporate and social sectors, allow for the
across the length and breadth of the country, from with fewer chances of getting out. optimal utilisation of funds and delivery of
the forests of Arunachal to the stronger states of larger-scale results. Knowledge and understanding
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka in the Over the past year, with the pandemic wreaking of geography-specific requirements come from local
deep South, to the Central India tribal belt, and the havoc on rural livelihoods, anecdotal cases of agricultural universities, farmers’ federations and a
plains of the west and north. livelihoods being lost all across the rural agriculture body of experts associated with the programmes.
1. https%3A%2F%2Frural.nic.in%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2FWorkingPaper_Poverty_DoRD_Sept_2020.pdf&clen=1093957&chunk=true
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ANNUAL REPORT 2020-21 42