Poverty is a significant problem in India and other countries. Any economic or social predicament of any country, if stated, is incomplete without the discussion of poverty. Despite the fact that India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, India has 179.6 million people who are below the poverty line. In fact, in the entire world, 872.3 million people are below the poverty line which is a very huge number.

Poverty is quite a complicated social phenomenon and it has many aspects and reasonings. But the main and most worrying outcome of poverty is illiteracy. Illiteracy leads an individual to be homeless, jobless and out of any money. These illiterate people tend to follow wrong paths like burglary, murders and disbelief. If there is anything more self-harmful than suicide that’s disbelief and people who lack knowledge serve these baseless beliefs and destroy their own and other’s lives too.

ILLITERACY LEADING TO SUPERSTITIONS

Harming the animals in any way is an offence but such disbelieves turn humans into monsters. Taking the example of the Islamic ritual ‘Udhiya‘, farm animals like goat, sheep, cows and camels are sacrificed to please the gods. As inhumane as it sounds, this practice of Udheiya is legal in some parts of the world and there is a special festival called ‘Eid al-Adha’ which means ‘Festival of sacrifice’. These innocent animals are brutally murdered and offered as a gift to their gods. The people who follow this ritual are delusional and inhuman. It is so sad to think that after all these years of change and development; some people still have their mindset stuck in the olden days and traditions which were naturally and humanly never acceptable.

Everyone is granted a life by the almighty and sacrificing the same life for the sake of a gift to the god is mere stupidity and ruthlessness.

Poverty not only leads to illiteracy but also to a whole generation for depriving basic needs. The people below poverty line end up staying there because they find it easier to be stable at one position rather than working hard and making something better for themselves and their families. The stereotypic explanation insists that the poor cause their own poverty. The poor would rather receive welfare payments than work in demeaning positions and put in an effort to earn a living.

EFFECTS OF POVERTY

There are very grave consequences of poverty.

~ The children who are born in poverty are undernourished and underweight.

~ They face a lot of health-related issues, growing up.

~ They do not get a proper education or no education at all.

~ They are sent to work barring the fact that they are underage. The children do all the odd jobs which are mostly not good for their health.

~ The poor in many countries do not have any insurance or medical support.

~ The homeless people lack immunization and proper nutrition.

These are just some impacts of poverty and these impart a very negative effect on an individual’s life.

The bottom line-

There is no certain way to entirely remove poverty but the government can surely take some measures to lessen the poverty rate. Firstly, the government can start programs for the poor to get jobs and get appropriate wages for their work. Secondly, the underprivileged children should be imparted with proper education and medical facilities. Lastly, the importance of education and the cons of poverty should be explained to the people and they should be motivated to make a better life for themselves.