International Day for Eradication of Poverty 2022: Know its significance, theme and more

New Delhi, Oct 17: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is observed on 17th October to raise awareness about the global issue of poverty. The theme for this year is "Dignity For all in Practice". Poverty is not just a lack of economic development but involves various other aspects.

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was first celebrated on October 17, 1987, to commemorate the victims of extreme violence, poverty, and hunger. On that day, over a hundred thousand people gathered at the Trocadéro in Paris, where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed in 1948, to honour the victims of extreme poverty, violence and hunger.

Significance

The day aims at improving access to sustainable livelihoods, empowering people living in poverty and their organisations, addressing the disproportionate impact of poverty on women, providing universal access to basic social services and developing social protection systems to support those who cannot support themselves.

The issue is dealt with by multidimensional efforts by governments the world over. In India, there are various inspiring stories of people rising from the rags to a sustainable means of livelihood. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shared many transformative stories in his radio programme Mann ki Baat.

Collaborative efforts by rural women:

"They were afflicted with poverty till recently, but after learning a new skill, they are now self-sufficient," said the Prime Minister in his address on one of the episodes of Mann Ki Baat. Here, Prime Minister Modi highlighted the efforts of women entrepreneurs from Phulpur and Kadipur, Uttar Pradesh. The group was started two years ago, when women from Bihar visiting the village encouraged the women of Kadipur to start a self-help group. With the help of Gramin Ajivika Mission, a scheme under the National Rural Livelihood Mission implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development, a slipper manufacturing unit was set up. In the unit, slippers are made using modern machines. Within a few months of setting up the group, they began making slippers and started to earn a livelihood by working in the unit. After 2 years of consistent efforts, the women of Kadipur and Phulpur could become self-reliant.

By this, women have not only come out of financial constraints but also improved their standard of living.

Digital India paving the way for small entrepreneurs :

In another episode of Mann ki Baat, Prime Minister Modi shared the story of Setha Singh Rawat from the Ajmer district of Rajasthan. Setha Singh Rawat is a tailor but when the Covid-19 pandemic came, customers count went down affecting his business. But Rawat did not lose hope and joined the Common Service Centre (CSC) E-Store and started working online. He saw that customers were placing orders for masks in large numbers. He hired some women and started manufacturing masks. After this, he started his online store named "Darzi Online" in which he started selling stitched clothes of many other kinds.

With the Digital India scheme, Setha Singh was saved from entering poverty. He not only increased the reach of his work but also employed more than 100 women.

Government of India's beneficiary targetted efforts:

Poverty concentration in India is higher in rural areas than in urban. According to the National Multidimensional Poverty Index developed by NITI Aayog, the poverty ratio in rural areas is 32.75% against 8.81% in urban areas. Addressing poverty in rural areas is critical to the progress of the country. The government of India's effort has given positive outcomes and India has been able to reduce extreme poverty. There are various schemes run by the government to address the challenges. There is a promising convergence of India's national development goals with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Multiple schemes are implemented for social inclusion.

There are various schemes of the government in sync with achieving SDG target 1 of eradicating extreme poverty. The schemes implemented by the government for the purpose includes, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana (DAY) -National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana and Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA).