Discuss the major reasons for poverty in India.

The main reasons for poverty in India are follows:
(i) Low level of economic development under the British colonial administration: The policies of the colonial government ruined traditional handicrafts. It discouraged development of industries like textiles. The low rate of growth persisted until the nineteen- eighties. This resulted in less job opportunities and low growth rate of incomes
(ii) High growth rate of population : The growth in population neutralises the increase in job opportunity. The failure at both- the fronts – promotion of economic growth and population control perpetuated the cycle of poverty.
(iii) The Green Revolution and industrial development in public and private sector provided job opportunities to some people but as many people could not get a proper job, they started working as rickshaw-pullers, vendors and domestic servants. These people could not earn much and started living in the slums and it led to increase in poverty in urban areas.
(iv) Unequal distribution of land and other resources also led to increase in poverty in rural areas particularly because the land reforms were not implemented properly.
(v) People spend too much money on religious ceremonies. They even take loans from the moneylenders for such expenditure that leads more poverty.
(vi) Small farmers take loans from moneylenders to busy seeds and fertilisers. Since poor people hardly have any savings they are unable to repay which leads to high level of indebtedness and poverty.
(vii) some other causes of poverty are excessive dependency on agriculture, social factors such as illiteracy, large size of family, law of and inheritance and caste system.