India needs to deal with the ‘big-5’ scourges in 10 years

India has an obligation to deal with the 'big-5' scourges: Want (poverty), ignorance (lack of educational opportunities), idleness (qualified unemployment), disease (ill-health); and squalor (inadequate housing), in its process of becoming an Asian super power. The idea of this inclusive growth has been explicitly stated in India's 11th five-year plan.

In the past decade, the percentage of population below the poverty line has certainly not increased. In fact it has continued to decline after the economic reforms or remained steady. 

There have been various measures to alleviate poverty such as NREGA schemes, subsidising food and enhancing agricultural techniques, it is therefore, disarming that India is estimated to house one third of the world's poor. It would be incorrect to say that all poverty reduction programmes have failed.

The growth of the middle class (which was virtually non-existent when India became a free nation in August 1947) indicates that economic prosperity has indeed been very impressive in India, but the distribution of wealth has been very uneven.

Poverty alleviation is expected to make better progress in the next 50 years than in the past, as a trickle-down effect of the growing middle class. 

Increasing stress on education and the increasing empowerment of women and the economically weaker sections of society are also expected to contribute to the alleviation of poverty.

For any society to move ahead, education is its growth engine. More than 40% of the population is still illiterate, tribal and scheduled castes being particularly affected.

The dropout rate in schools has to be reduced considerably and higher enrolment to the extent of 99% has to be achieved. The families who are living below the poverty line cannot afford children's education.

Also, there is always dire need of money and hence, they make their children start earning money at an early age. Added to all this education does not deliver what is required by the industry.

The outdated educational system, the rapid increase in population and the growth of economy not keeping pace are the biggest reasons for the growing numbers of youths who are qualified, have degrees but cannot find employment.

More educated people want only government jobs for regular monthly income; provident funds pension benefits, free medical treatment and living quarters, etc.

But there are not enough government jobs for the unemployed. Industries are now offering to their employees several of the benefits offered by the government but private enterprises want to employ only qualified hands that suit the profile and the requirements.

Schemes such as 'Chiranjeevi Yojana', 'Janani Suraksha Yojana', 'Mamta Abhiyan' and 'Nirogi Bal Varsh' have been initiated for betterment of health and increase in awareness for maternal care and new born babies.

The various vaccination, immunization and save the girl child campaign have dealt with other issues such as infancy deaths and adverse sex ratios.

But since the Primary Health Centres are the cornerstone of the rural care system, the big question is are the health centres easily accessible and do they provide quality health service to all. 

With provisions for safe drinking water and electrification still being a challenge, housing needs are still a distant dream. The sky rocketing real estate prices makes the dreams of aspiring home owners more remote.

To deal with this situation there is a trend of creating affordable or low budget housing in urban cities but this will remain a dream unless policies change to make raw material cheap and to increase the FSI. 

As an illustration, the FSI in Shanghai or Singapore range from 3.8 to 18 where as in Mumbai, FSI is 1. It's a matter of an interesting debate whether India is a capitalist country or a socialist one.

The rich-poor divide, no redistribution of wealth and the rich caste pushing the poorer castes to different locality, are distinctive of a capitalistic nature. Yet history bears testimony to India's socialistic bent.

Perhaps we can safely call India a mixed economy. Whatever the definition, and whatever the political manifestoes, the 'big-5' scourges will continue to rule over the next several decades.

The writer is an entrepreneur and educationist