IMPACTS OF POVERTY ALLEVIATION PROGRAMMES ON THE SOCIOECONOMIC CONDITIONS OF RURAL POOR

Abstract

The most important problems of India is that of improving the social, economic and political conditions of rural poor. Policy makers and planners have formulated and implemented several poverty alleviation programmes like Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) in 1979, Training of Rural Youth for Self Employment (TRYSEM) in 1979 and Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas (DWCRA) in 1982 to help the rural poor. The present study was conducted in Namakkal and Sivaganga districts of Tamil Nadu with an aim to identify the extent of participation and to assess the socio-economic impacts of poverty alleviation programmes on the beneficiaries. The study was conducted with 450 IRDP beneficiaries and the beneficiaries were selected by proportionate random sampling method. The salient findings of this study indicate that 37.11 per cent of the beneficiaries had low level participation, 30.67 per cent had changed their food habit from cumbu/cholam, rice combination to rice food alone, 75.63 per cent had started using ready made dresses and 18.44 per cent has sent their children for higher education. Only 14.44 per cent of the beneficiaries had registered increased income from less than Rs.1000/= per month to Rs.1500/= per month. Majority (99.33%) of the beneficiaries had increased their out side contact and had come to know about other ongoing development programmes. However, only a few beneficiaries alone have moved up to middle socio-economic status category from a lower category due to their participation in the poverty alleviation programmes.