Social exclusion and poverty in India

The state of affairs in India with regards to poverty and inequality is somewhat paradoxical. On the one hand, since its independence India has demonstrated a long standing political willingness to recognize different forms of inequality and exclusion and to use constitutional and legislative measures to address them. On the other hand, there continues to be large disparities in poverty levels and access to resources between regions, social groups and the sexes. India today remains a country of stark contrasts and striking disparities. We find considerable heterogeneity in poverty outcomes by state and within different social groups. States where STs comprise more than 10 percent of the total population register headcount poverty rates that are higher than the national average. Similarly, within Scheduled Tribes, those in lower deciles of the expenditure distribution do worse, registering lower growth in expenditure than those in the upper deciles. The paper highlights the need for socially inclusive policies; and indicates potential policy options to redress exclusion and its effects. Four poverty indicators, namely, headcount ratio, the depth and severity measures and also the absolute size of the poor population are considered. These indicators suggest that scheduled tribe households are most vulnerable to poverty. If the problem is not corrected, it will reduce the rate of poverty reduction of the country in the longer term as a whole and pose a threat to continued growth.