Spectre of poverty

In September 2018, the United Nations had commended India for lifting over 27 crore people out of poverty in a decade (2006-16), thereby almost halving its number of ‘multidimensional’ poor — those who are plagued not only by low wages but also by ill health, poor quality of work and the threat of violence. Now, the country is facing an even bigger challenge on this front. The International Labour Organisation (ILO), a UN body, has stated that about 40 crore people working in India’s informal sector, accounting for around 30 per cent of the country’s population, are at risk of sinking deeper into poverty due to the coronavirus crisis. About 90 per cent of the total workforce in India is engaged in the informal or unorganised economy, far higher than the global average of roughly 60 per cent. Poor implementation of the Minimum Wages Act, the absence of written job contracts and lack of access to social security benefits make such unregistered workers highly vulnerable to exploitation. The lockdown imposed amid the pandemic outbreak has exacerbated their problems, rendering lakhs of them — mostly daily wagers — without means to make ends meet.

The Centre needs to factor in these hapless and helpless people while taking a call on extending or gradually lifting the 21-day lockdown. A fortnight ago, the government had announced a Rs 1.7 lakh crore relief package for the poorest citizens. An assessment is required to determine how far this initiative has made a visible difference on the ground and to find ways to fix the bottlenecks.

According to the University of Oxford’s Covid-19 Government Response Stringency Index, India has adopted the strictest measures among all countries in the world in terms of workplace and institution closures, travel bans and other indicators. The onus is on the government to strike a fine balance between according priority to public health and resuming economic activity in a phased manner. India has been battling poverty and hunger for decades, with mixed results. Coronavirus is the new enemy. Now, all wars have to be fought concurrently — and with equal determination — so that even the lowest stratum can stay afloat.

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