All about India

1. Child labour
Due to the need to sustain their families for those living under the poverty line, children are often used as the main source of labour for low-skilled jobs. Driven by the presence of poverty in their families, children are often involved in bonded labour, where they work for and with a particular family or organization in a form of repayment. Although child labour is illegal in India, it is still widely carried out due to the lack of legislatives put in place to carry out the ban. Children themselves also often give up education opportunities in order to earn money for their families. Population growth adds on to this issue as the higher the number of children, the more the supply available for child labour. This can be seen from a survey done by the International Labour Organization in India in 2000 when population growth was high at a rate of 1.58%, which estimated that 5.5 million children had been forced in labour in Asia, while the Bonded Labour Liberation Front placed 10 million bonded children in India alone (Childline India Foundation, N.A.). To find out more about child labour in India, click here.


















2. Malnutrition/ starvation
Due to poverty, many families that fall below the poverty line are unable to sustain a healthy lifestyle, commonly skipping meals for up to days. According to a survey done by the Al Jazeera channel, in every second, a child under the age of 3 is underfed. India is also home to the largest number of malnutritioned children in the world (Childline India Foundation, N.A.): 60% of the population of children in India are malnourished, making up ⅓ of all malnutritioned children in the world, 46% of all children below the age of three are too small for their age, 47% are underweight and at least 16% are acutely malnourished, or wasted in India. Malnutrition resulting in death by starvation is common in India, responsible for 50% of all childhood deaths. (UNICEF, N.A.) It can thus be seen that malnutrition is a serious problem in India that needs to be resolved. To learn more about malnutrition among females in India as an impact of gender discrimination, click here.


















3. Poor living conditions
People who live under the poverty line often are unable to afford proper housing, thus resorting to living in slums in urban areas and self-built shelter in rural areas. This is aggravated by the growing population as land constraints make land more valuable and unaffordable for the poor. Slums and self-built shelters are usually congested and have bad sanitation. According to the first census of India’s population that lives in such areas, one in six residents live in areas “unfit for human habitation”. Quoting census commissioner C. Chandramouli., these areas face dilapidation, overcrowding, lack of ventilation and light or sanitation facilities. As a result, many living in poverty suffer from bad health conditions. To learn more about the issue of bad sanitation in India, click here.