Sociology Daily Answer Writing (05-12-2022)

Questions

1. Give a sociological analysis of the problems of migrant urban poor.   20
2. Write a short note on strategies of rural development.     10

Model Solutions

1. Give a sociological analysis of the problems of migrant urban poor. 20

Model Structure:
Introduction:

• By 2030, India's urban population is set to reach 590 million, an addition of approximately 300 million to India's current urban population. Much of this growth will be due to rural-urban migration. The success of the Indian urbanisation agenda will be hugely dependent on the poor migrants integration as urban citizens. In this regard, problems of migrant urban poor can be summarized as follows:

Main Body:

• Denial of basic welfare facilities: Many of the poor migrants are denied housing, PDS etc facilities by the state due to unavailability of documents or state apathy towards their need.
• Health and sanitation: They mostly live in slum dwellings as Marxist scholars put out that their needs are overlooked in the planning and vision of urban development which is meant for the haves section of society.
• Condition of women: Women do not find their skill and experience in a new environment and their condition is further debilitated and they are confined to the domestic sphere (Feminist Scholars).
• Child rights: Basic education is denied to child and cases of child labour increases in urban area.
• Informal sector: These poor migrants are mostly engaged in the informal sector with little or no social security provided by the state and hence they became more vulnerable.
• Threat to migrant culture: There is always a threat to poor migrants' way of life and culture as it is assimilated in mainstream society in urban areas. This led to alienation of these migrants from mainstream society.
• Identity threat: they are labeled as outsiders, encroachers, illegal occupants, and criminals. Re-construction of migrant identity as per mainstream demand and if they oppose, it leads to violence and harassment towards them.
• State neglect: At the beginning of the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012), there was an urban housing shortage in India of 24.7 million. Ninety nine per cent of this shortfall pertained to the economically weaker sections and lower income groups in which migrants typically fall.
• Urban development, if done in an inclusive manner, can enable social mobility and integration of migrants. The Right to Education Act has been a landmark intervention which has opened up private educational establishments to other economically weaker sections. There is a long road ahead, however, and similar legislation is also needed in the health, housing, and labour rights sectors. Good policy-making is only half of the solution. In the absence of proper execution or enforcement, it becomes mere eyewash, failing to help the most excluded.

Conclusion

• An acceptance of the permanence of the poor migrant population is critical to better planning, provisioning, and integration into India's urban development.

2. Write a short note on strategies of rural development. 10

Model Structure:
Introduction

• The concept of rural development is very broad. It embraces all those programmes that touch the lives of people residing in villages. For example- agriculture, irrigation, education, health, transportation and communication, social welfare etc.

Main Body

• Mention SC Dube study on CDP
• The strategies for rural development in India can be categorized in following phases:
• First phase of rural development-
  • Community Development Programme- It looked at villages as a common community. This programme was launched on 2nd Oct 1952. The following were the activities undertaken by the CDP:
    • Constructional programmes- Kutcha and pucca roads, drains, pavement of streets, school buildings etc.
    • Irrigational programmes-Wells, pumping sets, tanks etc.
    • Agricultural programmes- Reclamation, soil conservation, consolidation of holdings, improved seeds etc.
    • Institutional and other programmes-Youth clubs, women’s organization, community centres, cooperative societies, dispensaries etc.
• Second phase of rural development-
  • Land reforms-The prime objective was to bring social justice within the agrarian system and to eliminate the elements of exploitation.
  • Green Revolution-The objective was to bring self-reliance in agricultural production. High yielding varieties were introduced to increase the production which increased the agricultural production significantly.
• Third phase of rural development-
  • Area development programmes:
    • Drought prone area programme
    • Hill area development programme
    • Command area development programme
  • Programmes meant for specific groups and areas:
    • 20 point programme
    • National rural employment scheme
    • Indira Awas Yojna
    • Various poverty alleviation programmes
• Right based approach-
  • MGNREGA
  • National Food Security Act

Conclusion

• In the initial years after independence, a welfare approach was followed. There has been focus on uplifting specific groups. Then, gradually there has been a shift towards a rights based framework and demand driven approach for rural development. The role of PRIs is very crucial for rural development.

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