INDIAN SOCIETY & CULTURE

• Poverty is a situation that gives rise to a feeling of a discrepancy (difference or inconsistency) between what one has and one should have.
  

  What one should have is an internal construct (to build) hence is person feeling an experience or poverty is individual and unique. But the feeling of powerlessness and resourcefulness is possessed by all poor people.
  

  
  

  
  

  [Bersten Henry (1992)]:-
  

  Bersten henries (1992) identify the following dimensions of poverty.
  

1. Like of livelihood strategies(bad planning)
   
2. Inaccessibility to resources (money,land,credit)
   
3. Feeling of insecurity and frustration.
   
4. Inability to maintain and develop social relations with others as a sequence of lack of resources
   

   
   

• Cause of poverty :-
  

  
  There are two extreme perspective use (view) on the basis of which we can analyses the causes of poverty-the old and modern. One view of the poverty is that it is providential (protective care of god {nature}) and it is the result of individuals past karmas (deeds) or sins. The other view describe (written or said) that poverty to be a result of a failure of an individual working abilities or due to his lack of motivation. Describing the richness of rich person in term of his destiny (faith) and the poverty of a poor person in term of his lack of abilities search the economic interest of rich people as they escape paying high taxes to be use for uplifting the poor. One modern view links poverty with factors which are beyond and individual control, the other describes the functioning of socio system in society as the cause of poverty
  

  
  

  
  

  David Elesh (1973) has given three causes of poverty:-
  

1. Individual
   
2. Culture or sub-culture of poverty
   
3. Social culture earning
   

   Poverty is co-related to increase in family size as well. The larger the family, the lower the per capita (expenses per person) income and the lower standard of living.
   

   Lastly the educational level of people in the country also contributes to poverty. The number of higher, secondary, graduate & postgraduates or holder of technical degree /diploma is very small. No wonder that income of large number of people is found low.
   

   
   

• RURAL POVERTY:-
  

1. Inadequate and ineffective implementation of anti-poverty programs.
   
2. Low percentage of population engaged in non-agricultural pursuit (occupation/activities)
   
3. Non availability irrigational facilities and errabic(uncertain)rainfall in several states .
   
4. Low agricultural productivity resulting from dependence on traditional methods of cultivation and inadequate knowledge of modern skill.
   
5. Non availability of electricity of agricultural as well as industrial use in most of the villages.
   
6. Poor quality of live stock (animal for farming).
   
7. Imperfect and emploited credit market.
   
8. Lack of link road, communication facilities and markets.
   
9. Low level of education. the general literacy level in the rural areas in the country is low while in females it is very very low.
   
10. Absence of dynamic community leadership.
    
11. Intercasts conflicts and rivalries
    
12. Failure of seek women's co-operation in development activities associating them with plan programme.
    

    
    

• Illiteracy
  

  
  

  Concept of Illiteracy:-illiteracy in India since independence has been regarded as an obstacle to development. It is commonly developed that without substantially eliminating illiteracy, India cannot become co-nesive(living together)nation, and give all the citizens the equality of life they have long yearned (filled with)far.
  

  No wonder that education is general and literacy is particular have been accorded a high priority in the country development process.
  

  
  

  UNESCO defines literate person as:
  

  One who can with understanding both read and write is short simple statement on his own everyday life.
  

  In 1991, the census commission of India who defined – 'literate' person as: one who can read and write with understanding in any Indian language and not merely read and write. Those who can read but could not write are not literate. Formal education in a school is not necessary for a person to be considered as a literate.
  

  
  

• Causes of illiteracy
  

  
  The main causes of illiteracy are:-
  

1. High rate of population growth in relation to low-rate of adult population gaining literacy.
   
2. Ineffectiveness of primary schools in envolling and retaining students.
   
3. Traditional outlook of low class people in using the services of young children either for earning for money or for looking after infants instead of sending them to schools.
   
4. High level of poverty.
   
5. Non-conclusive (not contributing or helping) educational policies of the colonial rulers (of colonies) to the spread of education.
   
6. Low allotment of grants (funds) till the seventh five year plan.
   

   
   

   
   

• National policy on education
  

  
  The parliament approved in 1986, the national policy on education. It sought a national system of education laying down:-
  

1. A curricular framework to establish comparitapitability of competence at the end of various stages of education all over the country.
   
2. Re-enforcing the entire integrative aspect of society and culture.
   
3. Establishing a venue system necessary for an egalitarian (advising for equal rights) democratic and secular society.
   

   
   

• Adult education programme
  

  
  In the history of adult education the concept of adult education has constantly changed and developed under various names and they are :-
  

1. Basic education
   
2. Civil literacy
   
3. Functional literacy
   
4. Developmental literacy
   

1. Basic education:-
   

   
   This concept involved with the expansion of night schools which received grants-in-aid from 1929. The cause in this scheme was spread for a two years and included simple lessons like stories of historical importance, and elementary lessons in health, hygiene and first aid. The instruction was imported for two to three hours in the evening.
   

2. Civics literacy :-
   

This was conceived in 1949, and modified in 1952, when it was integrated with community development programme 35 lakhs illiterates become literate on all India level during the first five year plan and 40 lakhs during the 2^nd five year plan

1. functional literacy :-
   

   
   This emerged during 1960's. Defined as :
   

   Literacy integrated with occupation of the learning and rivalry related and directly related to development, functional literacy was translated into action in 1968. During the 4^th five year plan, nearly 30 lakh farmers joined the functional literacy classes.
   

2. Development literacy :-
   

   
   By early 1970's the concept of development literacy came to be envolved literacy was described not just the process of learning the skills of reading, writing and arithmetic . but a contribution to the liberation of man and his full development. In 1978, the govt. formulated the national adult education programe (NAEP). In the 1980's also witnessed the expansion of university adult education in India, when the university grants commission (UGC) provided grants to 93 universities.
   

   
   

• National adult education programme (NAEP)
  

  
  This was lunched. On October 2^nd 1978, with the aim of providing education and promoting literacy among all, illiterate persons, particularly in the age group of 15-35 years. This programeis a joined and collaborative effort of the central govt., state govt., union territory administrations, voluntary agencies (NGO's), universities, college and youth centers.
  

  The education under NAE programme is packaged which consist of :-
  

1. Importing literacy skills to the target illiterate population.
   
2. Their function development.
   
3. Creation of awareness among them regarding laws & policies of the govt. for the efficient implementation of strategy of redistributive instice.
   
4. Special emphasise is being placed on education of women, scheduled caste and scheduled tribes (SC/ST) and other worker section of society who comprise the bulk of illiterate population of India.
   

   
   

• Rural functional literacy programme
  

  
  The RFL programme is a sum programme of the adult education.programme which is fully funded by the central govt. and implemented by the states and union territories. The board objectives of these programmes are :-
  

1. To developed abilities in the learners to read and write.
   
2. To create awareness among the learners about their rights and duties and benefits they can draw from various schemes of socio-economic development by the govt.
   

   
   

• Unemployment