Paragraph on Poverty

Poverty is deprived economic condition and social status in which person lacks money to fulfill basic needs and other standards of living. Poverty has severe effects not only on the individual or society but the overall nation. It is a global issue more prevalent in developing and underdeveloped countries.

You will find below a number of short and long paragraphs on Poverty. We hope these Poverty paragraphs will help students in completing their school assignments. These will also help children to write and read out paragraphs with simple words and small sentences. Students can select any paragraph on Poverty according to their particular requirement.

Long and Short Paragraphs on Poverty

Paragraph on Poverty 1 (100 words)

Poverty is lack of finance, material goods and possessions. It occurs due to various economic, social and political factors prevalent in a society. Individuals who do not enjoy the minimum standard of living as rest of the population in the country are also said to be living in poverty. There is another section of individuals who do not have access to basic necessities of living such as food, clothing and shelter. These are said to be living below the poverty line. The basis on which poverty is defined varies from country to country. There is a lot of economic disparity and people are suffering because of it. The government must work upon decreasing the same and diminishing poverty.

Paragraph on Poverty 2 (150 words)

Poverty is not having enough money to meet basic necessities in life such as food, shelter, clothing, healthcare and education. Poverty has many aspects. Poverty is hunger and malnutrition, poverty is being ill and not having access to healthcare, poverty is lack of education and not having ability to read and write.

Today, many people are living in poverty all over the world. It means insecurity, helplessness, and marginalization of individuals and families. It means being exposed to vulnerability and humiliation. Many people suffer due to extreme poverty also referred to as absolute poverty. Absolute poverty is when people do not even have access to adequate resources measured in terms of nutrition to maintain minimum level of health.

Another type of poverty is relative poverty. It is that type of poverty when people don’t meet government determined minimum standards of living as compared to rest of the population. Poverty impacts people negatively and hampers the growth and development of the society as a whole. Preventing poverty is a major issue globally.

Paragraph on Poverty 3 (200 words)

Poverty is lack of finance, status and other material possession. It is the deprivation of overall wellbeing of a person and includes several dimensions. It refers to the deprived economic and social conditions. It indicates low income and inability to acquire the basic necessities such as food, shelter, clothing, education and healthcare.

The Cycle of Poverty

The cycle of poverty refers to the phenomenon where poverty continues for at least three generations i.e. the family has no living intimates who own and can transfer the social, cultural and intellectual capital important to change the economic condition. There are limited or no resources for such families. There are many drawbacks that impact the circular course which makes it very difficult for the individual to break the cycle of poverty.

Due to poor economic and social conditions and lack of education and connection it becomes impossible to get out of poverty. The main causes of cycle of poverty could be lack of resources such as land, finance, education, knowledge and technical assistance, natural disasters, low productivity and income, unemployment, unhealthiness and business failure. It is something that passes to next generation and becomes a trap. Thus, it is a cycle that is hard to break.

Paragraph on Poverty 4 (250 words)

Poverty is deprivation of means to satisfy basic needs such as food, shelter, clothing, education and healthcare. Poverty has toxic effects on children. Children exposed to poverty have to suffer severe and more frequent health issues compared to those who grow under better economic conditions.

Effects of Poverty on Children

Here are some severe effects that poverty can have over children:

• There is higher risk of infant mortality.
• Infants born in poverty are weak and have less birth weight. This leads to many physical and mental disabilities. Further, the health and growth of infant is affected due to lack of resources and unhealthy surroundings. The infants in poor economic conditions are not only more likely to be sick and unhealthy they are also more likely to die due to undernourishment and malnutrition.
• Children who grow up in poverty skip school more frequently due to sickness. They are more vulnerable to chronic diseases, iron deficiency anemia, fatigue, asthma and other illnesses.
• Lack of nutrition and poverty also affect their learning ability. Poor economic conditions and ignorance also affect children socially and emotionally. Poverty impacts the overall development of a child negatively.
• Children in extreme poverty are mostly deprived of basic education and healthcare amenities.
• There is rise in crimes such as child trafficking, child organ trafficking, child sex trafficking, child kidnapping for cash due to poverty.

Conclusion

Thus, there are many damaging and harmful effects on mental and physical growth of a child. Poverty is a serious issue globally. It has to be prevented to save our children from its adverse effects and to build their future.

Paragraph on Poverty 5 (300 words)

Poverty refers to poor economic condition and lack of material possessions. The poor have further been divided into different categories based on their economic condition. The poorest are those who face extreme poverty and are devoid of even the basic needs.

Ill Effects of Absolute Poverty

Absolute poverty, also known as extreme poverty, is the condition in which humans are deprived of basic needs including food, shelter, safe drinking water and clothing. It refers to severe state of deprivation.

Here are the ill effects of extreme poverty:

• Malnutrition
• Diseases and Illnesses
• Illiteracy
• Unhygienic Surroundings and Poor Environment
• High Infant Mortality and Low Life Expectancy
• Overall Lack of Human Wellbeing

Absolute poverty prevails more in developing and underdeveloped countries. The per capita income required for survival is different in all countries and time periods. In 2015, World Bank defined extreme poverty is individual living on less than 1.90 US$ purchasing power parity per day and moderate poverty would be defined as less than 2$ or 5$ purchasing power parity per day. However, each country has its own threshold for extreme poverty line. The measure for global poverty line was defined by World Bank considering the high cost of living.

But if one meets the requirement of sustenance resources, for example subsistence farmers, they may have less income without comparatively low living standards. However, the threshold of poverty line declared by World Bank has been argued as for countries with high currency value it is low and for countries with low currency value it is high. As per World Bank data, the percentage of people living below poverty line has decreased since 1990. The human development indicators have also improved. In developing countries, the life expectancy rate has decreased and child mortality rate has increased since World War II.

Conclusion

Thus, people living in absolute poverty are the most vulnerable and are deprived of social, economic and cultural well-being.

Paragraph on Poverty 6 (350 words)

Poverty is the condition in which an individual or family lacks the amount of money to meet the basic needs for survival and minimum standard of living.

Effects of Poverty

• People in extreme poverty are deprived even of their day to day needs like food, clothing, clean drinking water and shelter. They are unable to send children to school or other training institutions.
• It is certain to find crime where poverty thrives. People often turn to criminal means due to poor economic conditions. Further, social inequality and lack of education are the aiding factors. Poverty may force people to indulge in illegal activities like theft, drug dealing, human-trafficking and sex trafficking etc.
• Due to poverty and malnutrition the health of poor is severely affected. There is little or no access to clean drinking water, food, hygienic surroundings, sanitation etc. they have to live in severe conditions; which leads to many ailments. The health of poor is also affected by working in unsafe environments. Under such conditions they also meet accidents sometimes. Consuming drugs and alcohol is common which again affects their health negatively. Due to poor economic conditions prevention, health care and recovery also becomes difficult.
• Feminization of poverty has also increased. Divorces, unwanted births and female feticide are prevailing more in deprived communities which forces poor women to head the family solely. Feminization of poverty is also attributed to women’s vulnerability by the sexist and gender biased society which does not protect women’s rights and wealth.
• Life expectancy of poor is shorter than the rich due to deprived economic conditions and social exclusion. The impact of poverty on poor is not just on their physical health but the mental health is also affected severely.

Conclusion

Several measures need to be taken to prevent the issue of poverty. Agricultural growth contributes to reduced poverty. Infrastructural development is important for economic growth as it generates more employment opportunities. Human resource development with the help of education and training is also very important. Efficient functioning of public distribution system for the poor is vital. More special schemes to provide employment opportunities to poor should be implemented. Overall economic growth and development is important to eradicate poverty.

Paragraph on Poverty 7 (400 Words)

Poverty is the condition in which an individual or family is unable to fulfill the basic needs for the sustenance of life. The basic necessities include food, shelter, clothing, healthcare and education. There are many reasons that give rise to poverty. Given below are some of the chief causes of poverty.

Chief Causes of Poverty in India

Here are some of the main reasons of poverty in our country:

Overpopulation: Population in India is increasing at a rapid speed due to high birth rate and this aggravates the problem of poverty. The growth in population is more compared to the growth in our national income. As a result, the per capita income decreases. The main reason of rural poverty is also unplanned family. The pressure of overpopulation is hampering the economic development of the country.

Unemployment: Unemployment is another major reason for poverty. Of course, if the people are unemployed their economic condition is going to diminish. The rise in population is the major reason for upsurge in unemployment as the supply of labor increases. Labor being replaced by modern technology in industries has made the situation even worse.

Lack of Economic Growth: Lack of economic growth is the major cause for prevailing poverty in India. This affects the per capita income of the person. Large amount of capital is needed for development in the transportation, healthcare, industrial, educational, agricultural and other major sectors. But lack of capital hinders the development of the country.

Inflation and Food Prices: Increase in food prices is also one of the factors that influence poverty. The cost of minimum consumption expenditure increases with the rise in food prices. Public distribution systems distribute major commodities through fair price shops. However, there are many loopholes in the functioning of such systems and the supply of food grains does not meet the consumption needs of the poor families.

Natural Calamities: We all are aware of the adverse effects of natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, droughts, etc. Not only do people lose their habitat but are also deprived of other basic necessities. Developing and underdeveloped countries are economically less prepared for such situations than the developed countries and this leads to extreme poverty.

Agricultural Sector: Agricultural production plays dominant part in Indian economy but due to climatic changes and uncertain rainfall agricultural production may vary. Thus, the year of low agricultural production raises poverty. Further, rise in the cost of food grains makes the situation even worse.

Conclusion

Thus, planning and development to prevent poverty is vital. Social welfare services to eradicate poverty should be implemented efficiently. Better healthcare and education should be provided free to the deprived groups.

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