Below The Poverty Line Research Articles

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana: An Initiative of Government towards Better Life for all

The Honourable Prime Minister of India announced the beginning of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) on May 1, 2016. The scheme's primary goal is to give women from low-income households access to LPG connections without requiring a payment. The government's goal was to provide 5 crore LPG connections to low-income families in rural India, with a focus on women living below the poverty line (BPL). Later, the goal was raised to 8 crore, which was accomplished on September 7, 2019, seven months ahead of schedule, under the Ujjwala Yojana Scheme, which went under the slogan "Swachh Indhan, Behtar Jeevan.

Effectiveness of a Health Educational Program in Enhancing Breast Cancer Knowledge Among Women in Rural Karnataka, South India.

Breast cancer is one of thesignificant causes of mortality in India, ranking second only to cervical cancer among women. Annually, the country has witnessed the detection of 200,000 new cases, with 60% identified in the early stages. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of a health education intervention program designed to enhance knowledge about breast cancer among women in rural Karnataka. A descriptive study design was employed and a total of 320 women were selected through multi-stage sampling.The educational interventioninvolved a PowerPoint presentation by the investigator, which wasfollowed by group discussions that culminated with plenary sessions for clarifying the doubts of respondents. At the end of every educational session, pre-designed, pre-tested, and validated questionnaires, comprising a mix of structured and semi-structured questions, were completed by the respondents as part of the post-test. Results: Among the participants, 44.7% were educated up to the primary level, a majority (64.1%) were employed, and most (90.3%) were married. Additionally, 56.9% reported a monthly income below 3000 Indian rupees (₹), with the majority (86.3%) falling below the poverty line (BPL) category. A statistically significant improvement (p = 0.0001) in knowledge related to breast health, breast self-examination, clinical breast examination, and mammography was observed in the post-intervention phase when compared to the pre-test. 86.2% of the respondents showed an increase in knowledge level about breast health (either from poor to moderate or from moderate to good) and the practice of breast self-examination increased from 4.7% (pre-test) to 60.3% (post-test). Conclusion: The study demonstrated a significant enhancement in women's knowledge levels after implementing the health education intervention program. These findings underscore the importance of health education strategies in raising awareness of lifestyle diseases, particularly breast cancer, among women.

Role of Microfinance on Women Empowerment in Siddharth District of U.P

Abstract: A large portion of the population currently lives below the poverty line (BPL), which is a problem for emerging nations. Microfinance can aid developing nations in overcoming their poverty issues. Micro-finance offers a variety of financial resources (such as loans, insurance, savings, etc.) to the underprivileged so they can stabilize their businesses. Individuals can use these resources for a wide range of purposes, including pursuing business possibilities, raising their standard of living, paying off other sizable debts, responding to emergencies, etc. Microfinance is the arrangement of financial services including loans, savings, insurance, money transfers and remittances offered to the lower income groups or poor entrepreneurs, who otherwise cannot avail the standard banking services. The motive behind Microfinance is to give people in poverty a privilege to become self-sufficient by offering them crucial banking services at considerable smaller monetary amounts.

IMPACT OF MINING ON TRIBAL LIVELIHOOD: COMPARATIVE STUDY OF KEONJHAR AND KALAHANDI DISTRICTS

Keonjhar and Kalahandi districts fall under the purview of the Fifth Schedule of the Indian Constitution which entitles ownership right to tribal over their natural resources. It also ensures tribal rights to maintain their unique culture and language. In the Keonjhar district, mining has been carried out with remarkable speed for the longest period of time. It has been contributing immensely to the state's mineral output. But the district remained one of the poorest regions in Odisha and has maximum people living under high BPL (below the poverty line). Still, there have been no successful antimining protests taking place here. On the other hand, the Kalahandi district witnessed an organised successful protest by the Kondh tribes in opposing the Vedanta plan of extracting minerals from Niyamagiri mountain. The comparison is an attempt to explore diverse linkages of the impact of mining on tribal livelihood.

The need to prioritize consumption: A difference-in-differences approach to analyze the total effect of India's below-the-poverty-line policies on LPG use

In 2016, India introduced the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) policy, which offers below-the-poverty-line (BPL) households a free liquified petroleum gas (LPG) connection. Simultaneously, the National and State governments implemented numerous health, housing, and other programs also targeting BPL households. Using a difference-in-differences approach with a non-equivalent comparison group, we provide causal evidence of the total effect of BPL policies on the probability of obtaining an LPG connection, overall LPG consumption, opting for home delivery, and clean cooking access. Using a two-part model of LPG use, the total effect of the policies is a 7.9 and 8 percentage point increase (46.4% and 50.0% change) in the probability of an increase in any positive LPG use for BPL households but no change in the magnitude of LPG use among households with any positive LPG use. We calculate that the overall increase in LPG use due to BPL policies was 0.68 kg per household. We find no effect for home delivery or cooking energy access tier. Our work suggests the need to expand the policy to address consumption more effectively. Finally, this analysis advocates investigation into consumption incentives and the size of the refill subsidy beyond simply improved targeting of BPL households.

Analysis of Incidence and Determinants of Poverty Among Scheduled Caste Households in Rural Punjab

The present article attempts to analyse the incidence and determinants of poverty among Scheduled Caste (SC) households in rural Punjab. The study based on the primary data of 543 SC households selected from rural areas of Punjab, concluded that the incidence of consumption-based poverty among different categories is slightly less than the incidence of income-based poverty among different categories of SCs across sampled districts. One explanation for this is that SC households try to maintain a minimum standard of living by taking loans from various institutional as well as non-institutional agencies. There is a negative relationship between the income earned by SC households and the percentage of those living below the poverty line (BPL). The study suggests that the proportion of SCs living BPL can decrease with an increase in their level of income and employment.

Analysis on the implementation of a health improvement project (Garbage Clinical Insurance) in Indonesia: a literature review

Indonesia Medika has established "Garbage Clinical Insurance" (GCI), which enables the population below the poverty line (BPL) to obtain health insurance by donating their garbage to pay the premium. The objective of this paper was to critically examine the implementation of GCI in Indonesia by reviewing the background, effects, and sustainability of this program. A literature search of studies related to GCI, other types of micro health insurance, and their applications in developing countries was conducted. Recent news (post 2014) related with the implementation of GCI was also consulted. The literature revealed that the foundation of GCI was informed by the Declaration of Alma Ata with the ideal of making health care services accessible to everyone. Unlike most health insurance, the mechanisms of GCI seem less likely to trigger moral hazard among its beneficiaries. However, as a micro insurance program, the sustainability of GCI continues to be called into question. The critical analysis of the present study has highlighted the application of GCI, a micro health insurance initiative, and its relevance to Indonesia. GCI tended to work well as it was able to utilise Indonesia's social capital. However, GCI should aim to increase the benefits package available to its members in order to maintain the sustainability of the program.

Masking Poverty and Entitlement: RSBY in Selected Districts of West Bengal

In 2008, India launched a flagship national health insurance programme, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) for those living below the poverty line (BPL). 1 Using qualitative methods and thematic analysis, this exploratory study of poor women from three selected districts of West Bengal sought to gauge reasons for low registration and factors affecting choice of institutional healthcare among those who had registered for the RSBY. In particular, we sought to understand the underlying factors, if any, which affect judgements on institutional healthcare.

Parental Motivations in Sending Children to School in a Paradoxical Indian Learning System of Declining Learning Curve and Increasing Enrolment: A Case Study of West Bengal

Abstract Current studies explain the growth in enrolment in Indian primary schools to be a result of ‘cost-effective’ incentivized education by the Indian Government. However, this does not explain why parents living below the poverty line (BPL) are forgoing higher opportunity costs and sending their children to school, especially in the context of a declining learning curve. This study investigates the motivating factors among BPL parents and the relative significance of incentives in shaping their decisions regarding their children’s enrolment. This study also reveals qualitative and quantitative data based results showing Right to Education (RTE) Act’s (2009) ‘free and compulsory primary education for all’ motivating millions of ‘very poor’ first generation learners to enroll. However, in these households, incentivized education is not sufficiently cost-effective to substitute child labor. Furthermore, The Right to Education Act’s No Fail Policy is shown to have negatively impacted learning in government schools.

Parental Motivations in Sending Children to School in a Paradoxical Indian Learning System of Declining Learning Curve and Increasing Enrolment: A Case Study of West Bengal

Current studies explain the growth in enrolment in Indian primary schools to be a result of ‘cost-effective’ incentivized education by the Indian Government. However, this does not explain why parents living below the poverty line (BPL) are forgoing higher opportunity costs and sending their children to school, especially in the context of a declining learning curve. This study investigates the motivating factors among BPL parents and the relative significance of incentives in shaping their decisions regarding their children’s enrolment. This study also reveals qualitative and quantitative data based results showing Right to Education (RTE) Act’s (2009) ‘free and compulsory primary education for all’ motivating millions of ‘very poor’ first generation learners to enroll. However, in these households, incentivized education is not sufficiently cost-effective to substitute child labor. Furthermore, The Right to Education Act’s No Fail Policy is shown to have negatively impacted learning in government schools. DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2016.v5n3s1p441

Impact of Microfinance on Poor Women: Lessons from Sabarkantha, Gujarat

Microfinance, in simple terms, can be defined as financial services for the poor. Currently, the policy-makers all over the globe are increasing their emphasis on microfinance. At this point of time, considering the energy and money being channelized to this sector, one of the issues that need to be addressed is that of effectiveness of the various models of microfinance delivery. With this backdrop in mind, the present study is an attempt at carrying out an impact assessment of microfinance. This cross-sectional research has been conducted in the Sabarkantha district of the state of Gujarat among the women living below the poverty line (BPL), where the control group comprises new entrants, while the treatment group has old participants of the programme. The study involves both quantitative and qualitative data analysis at the household level and the individual level. The study found that microfinance increases the income of the poor clients who are into the programme for more than two years. It also found that consumption expenditure came down during the initial period of participation as the participants learnt financial prudence, and after that, the change was negative but insignificant. At the individual level, it was found that participation in the programme improved the financial security for the clients and the proportion of daughters attending school to those eligible for schooling. However, there was no significant change in the financial decision-making process. The impact assessment concluded that microfinance does impact the poor women positively, but in order to improve the quality of their lives and to sustain this improvement over a period of time, further interventions at the social and human level are required.

Cost of care: a study of patients hospitalized for treatment of psychotic illness.

Background:Combination of ill health and poverty poses special challenges to health care providers. Mental illness and costs are linked in terms of long-term treatment and lost productivity, and it affects social development. The purpose of the present study is to assess the economic burden of poor families when a family member needs hospitalization due to psychosis.Materials and Methods:The information was gathered from caregivers of 100 psychotic inpatients of Medical College Hospital of Kerala during a period of 6 months. Data regarding components of expenses such as cost of medicine, laboratory investigations, food, travel, and other miscellaneous expenses during their inpatient period were collected by direct personal interview using specially designed proforma. The data were analyzed using Epi-info software. The patients below the poverty line (BPL) were compared with those above poverty line (APL).Results:There was no significant difference between patients from BPL and APL in respect of amounts spent on the studied variables except for laboratory investigations during the hospital stay.Conclusions:The results showed that the studied subjects are facing financial difficulties not only due to hospitalization, but also due to the recurrent expense of their ongoing medication. The study recommends the need of financial support from the government for the treatment of psychotic patients.

Nutritional status in stage V dialyzed patient versus CKD patient on conservative therapy across different economic status

Background: This aim of this multi-centric cross-sectional study was to assess the nutritional status in Indian chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and to compare the nutritional indicators between stage 5 dialyzed (CKD-D) patients below the poverty line (BPL), and stage 3–4 non-dialyzed (CKD-ND) patients above (APL) and below the poverty line. Methods: Patients were selected from a government medical college hospital, a charity-based outpatient dialysis unit, and a non-profit tertiary care center. The study groups included BPL CKD-ND (n = 100), BPL CKD-D (n = 98), and APL CKD-ND (n = 92) patients, based on a cut-off of per capita income US $1.25 a day. Patients were enquired by a qualified renal dietitian about their pattern of diet, and daily energy and protein intake by 24 h recall method. Anthropometric measurements and biochemical investigations were made and compared. Results: Nutritional indicators were low in all three groups compared to those prescribed by European Best Practice Guidelines (EBPG). BPL CKD-D patients had low serum albumin levels (32.44444 ± 6.279961 g/L; p = 0.017) and 41.83% of them were underweight. The APL CKD-ND group registered the lowest mean daily energy (22.576 ± 6.289 kcal/kg/day) and protein intake (0.71 ± 0.06 g/kg/day), due to dietary restrictions imposed on them by themselves and unqualified renal dietitians. The APL group had better indicators of nutritional status in terms of mid-upper arm circumference (p = 0.001), triceps skin fold thickness (p < 0.001), and serum hemoglobin (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Several nutritional parameters were below the recommended international guidelines for all the three groups, though the high income group had better parameters from several indicators. There is an urgent need for nutritional counseling for CKD-D and CKD-ND patients.

Identifying BPL Households: A Comparison of Methods

The identification of poor households has been passionately debated in India. Since 1992 the Indian government has identified households as living below the poverty line (BPL) and hence eligible for certain benefits. Such identification exercises occurred three times, and a fourth BPL identification exercise is underway. Although the fourth BPL identification method aims to improve upon previous methods, the empirical implications of, and precise justification for, the revised method are not yet clear. This paper empirically examines the proposed Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) methodology and compares it with alternative proposals. Using variables in the third National Family Health Survey (NFHS), we show that the choice of a particular methodology (which may include exclusion criteria, inclusion criteria, and/or a scoring method) matters. These criteria – and even the exclusion criteria used alone – disagree as to which households are BPL; thus the criteria require empirical scrutiny and justification. We also visit the need for a scoring method to include sufficient indicators to match state poverty caps. Finally, we show how state-level BPL poverty caps vary if they reflect multiple deprivations in variables – such as malnutrition and housing – through a multidimensional poverty index, rather than reflecting expenditure-based poverty rates alone.

Selecting a Targeting Method to Identify BPL Households in India

This paper proposes how to select a methodology to target multidimensionally poor households, and how to update that targeting exercise periodically. We present this methodology in the context of discussions regarding the selection of a targeting methodology in India. In 1992, 1997, and 2002 the Indian government identified households that are below the poverty line (BPL) and in updating the 2002 methodology, alternative methods have been proposed and vigorously debated. A fourth BPL method was published and a corresponding Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC), implemented. Using the third National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3), this paper illustrates how a BPL targeting method using SECC variables might be calibrated to a multidimensional poverty measure. This paper compares the fit between a benchmark measure of multidimensional poverty and several plausible targeting methods to determine which method(s) approximate it—as well as related measures—most closely. We find a ten-item binary scoring method, which uses variables already available in the SECC questionnaire, provides a strong proxy. The emphasis of this paper is to illustrate how a particular targeting method can be justified, rather than to advocate any particular solution.

Impact of RSBY on enrolled households: lessons from Gujarat

Launched in 2008, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) insurance scheme has the mandate of improving access to quality health services of families living below the poverty line (BPL) while providing financial protection against health shocks. Four years following implementation, it is yet to find its presence in all districts of the twenty-eight States in India. Budgetary limitations, the balance between maintaining the claims ratio and sustainability, the contractual relationship between insurance companies and empanelled hospitals, and the weak monitoring system are few challenges that the scheme faces today. In this paper, we explore implementation of RSBY based on the three dimensions of universal health coverage (UHC) stated in the World Health Report 2010 i.e. “the proportion of the population to be covered” (breadth of coverage), “the range of services to be made available” (depth of coverage) and “the proportion of the total costs to be met” (height of coverage).

Access of the Rural Poor to Primary Healthcare in India

The 11th Five-Year Plan of India emphasises the wider and better coverage of services, such as primary healthcare for the majority of population. For this purpose, various healthcare related programmes have aimed at the vulnerable sections of the society traditionally using social criteria like Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) populations. Although they are found to have marginally worse health outcomes than the national average, they are far better than the one’s for the poor on economic criteria. The present article examines the coverage of basic primary healthcare services among the below the poverty line (BPL) population in rural areas of India and provides direct empirical evidence. Data used for the study was from a primary sample survey of rural BPL households in six states of India. The results of the survey showed that the coverage of primary healthcare services, such as ante-natal care (ANC), institutional deliveries, and immunisation was very low among the BPL population. Moreover, results of a comparison of the SC and ST and non-SC and ST population within the sample of the selected households showed that the former had a relatively poorer coverage compared to the latter. The focus of the programme for improving coverage of primary healthcare services should be on the BPL population. If it is done, it would also result in the improvement of coverage among the SC and ST population. Merely focusing on the SC and ST population will leave the poorest of the poor ignored and unattended.

The Implementation of RSBY in Chhattisgarh, India: A study of the Durg district

The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) scheme is a health insurance model currently being implemented by the Indian government. It is a model, however, still in nascent state, subject to tensions and value testing. Very few studies have hitherto assessed the scheme’s implementation and whether the stated objectives of the government initiative are being fulfilled. This short study undertaken in the Durg district of Chhattisgarh reveals that RSBY fails to cover the population living Below the Poverty Line (BPL). Likewise there is discrepancy in the consistency of information and knowledge regarding the scheme among the beneficiaries who are themselves continuing to incur high out-of-pocket expenses. There are thus severe issues in transparency and accountability within the RSBY scheme. Unless the public health delivery system is strengthened and the private sector regulated and indeed monitored, the scheme will not yield the desired results, and the cost of healthcare will further escalate for the poor. In the absence of regulated health services there needs to be more debate, and indeed greater research, on the implementation and the design of RSBY.

A rapid evaluation of the Rajiv Aarogyasri community health insurance scheme in Andhra Pradesh, India

In 2007, the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh introduced the Rajiv Aarogyasri community health insurance scheme (RAS) in order to break the vicious cycle of ill health, poverty, indebtedness and bankruptcy among families who are below the poverty line (BPL). The purpose of the scheme was to improve access to treatment of certain medical and surgical conditions for BPL families through a network of health care providers. We conducted a rapid evaluation of RAS at the request of government of Andhra Pradesh. The purpose of the evaluation was to provide insights into the current performance of the scheme, to examine whether it is meeting the overall objectives and to suggest ways by which it may be further strengthened.

Selecting a Targeting Method to Identify BPL Households in India

This paper proposes how to select a methodology to target multidimensionally poor households, and how to update that targeting exercise periodically. We present this methodology in the context of discussions regarding the selection of a targeting methodology in India. In 1992, 1997, and 2002 the Indian government identified households that are Below the Poverty Line (BPL) and in updating the 2002 methodology, alternative methods have been proposed and vigorously debated. A fourth BPL method was published and a corresponding Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC), implemented. Using the third National Family Health Survey (NFHS3), this paper illustrates how a BPL targeting method using SECC variables might be calibrated to a multidimensional poverty measure. This paper compares the fit between a benchmark measure of multidimensional poverty and several plausible targeting methods to determine which method(s) approximate it – as well as related measures – most closely. We find a ten-item binary scoring method, which uses variables already available in the SECC questionnaire, provides a strong proxy. The emphasis of this paper is to illustrate how a particular targeting method can be justified, rather than to advocate any particular solution.