SUMMER PROJECT

ROLE OF GROCERY SHOPS IN POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN KUDA VILLAGE

DIMAPUR

(A project work submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the award for the degree
of Bachelor of Arts)

Submitted by:
1.18FHUCNNDO3025- Nepuni Asiiso
2.18FHUCNNDO3026- Nousi Kire
3.18FHUCNNDO3027- Tongpanglepden
4.18FHUCNNDO3028- Maongkaba
5.18FHUCNNDO3029- Pelelhoukho Theyo
6.18FHUCNNDO3030- S. Alina Sumi
7.18FHUCNNDO3031- Khrieno Letro

Supervised by:
Odimenla Jamir
Assistant Professor
Department of Economics
ICFAI University, Nagaland

Submitted To:
Dr Salome Kinny
ICFAI University Nagland
Sovima, 6th Mile Dimapur Nagaland
 Acknowledgement

The success and final outcome of the project required a lot of guidance and assistance from many
people and we are extremely privileged to have gotten this all along till the completion of our
project. All that we have done is only due to such supervision and assistance, and we are sincerely
grateful to them.
We express our undying gratitude to our faculty in charge Miss Odimenla Jamir, Department of
Economics, ICFAI University, Nagaland, without whom this project would not have been
completed.
Lastly, we would like to thank all those people who assisted and helped us to carry out this project
successfully.
 Contents :

1. Introduction
2. Aims and objectives of the study
3. Methodology
4. Literature review
5. Data interpretations
6. Findings
7. Conclusions
8. References
9. Appendix
 INTRODUCTION

Definition of Poverty

Poverty is not having enough material possessions or income for a person’s needs. Poverty is
multifaceted concept, which may include social, economic and political elements. Absolute
poverty is the complete lack of the means necessary to meet basic personal needs, such as food,
clothing and shelter. Poverty is generally of two types: a) Absolute poverty is synonymous with
destitution and occurs when people cannot obtain adequate resources to support a minimum level
of physical health. b) Relative poverty occurs when people do not enjoy a certain minimum level
of living standards as determined by a government that vary from country to country, sometimes
within the same country. The economic concept of poverty is defined in terms of the external
circumstances which condition a person’s behavior, especially the behavior he displays in
economic transaction, buying consumption items, selling productive services, securing
professional advice, etc.

1.1 Different estimation of poverty line by different organization

According to the most recent estimation by the World Bank, about 10 percent of the world
population lived on less than US$ 1.90 a day. Nearly 1.1 billion fewer people are living in extreme
poverty than in 1990. In 2015, 736 million people lived on less than $1.90 a day. The majority of
the global poor live in rural areas are poorly educated, employed in rural agricultural sector, and
under 18 years of age.

The World Bank in India

With the population of more than 1.3 billion, India is the world’s largest democracy. Already the
world’s third largest economy in purchasing parity terms, India aspires to better the lives of all its
citizens and become a high-middle income country by 2030. In recent years, the country has made
a significant dent in poverty level, with extreme poverty dropping from 46 percent to an estimated
13.4 percent over the two decades. While India is still home to 176 million poor people, it is
seeking to achieve better growth by reshaping policy approaches to human development, social
protection , rural transformation etc.
The poverty estimate in India is solely based on calories intake of food. It is defined as
consumption of 2100 calories per day for urban population and 2400 calorie per day for rural
population.

In India the income limit for households for qualifying as a beneficiary under BPL (below poverty
line) list has been pegged at about Rs. 27000 per annum, according to methodology approved by
Union Cabinet. A household with annual earnings of more than Rs. 27000 will stand excluded
from the BPL list.

The important causes of poverty in India are due to lack of inclusive economic growth, sluggish
agricultural progress and poverty, non-implementation of land reforms, rapid population growth,
unemployment and under-employment, inflation and food prices.

1.2 What are small businesses?

Small businesses are privately owned corporation, partnerships, or sole proprietorships that have
fewer employees and less revenue than a regular-sized or corporation. Business are defined ‘small’
in terms of being able to apply for government support and qualify for preferential tax policy varies
depending on the country and industry.

Small businesses includes service or retail operations such as convenience store, small grocery
stores, bakeries, hairdressers or trade people (e.g., carpenters, electricians), restaurant, guest
houses, very small-scale manufacturing , etc.

1.4 Poverty in Nagaland

The state of Nagaland has more than four lakh people who are living under Below Poverty Line.
The monthly per capita of Nagaland’s population in both the urban and rural areas does not show
much difference. In rural area of Nagaland there are about 2.8 lakhs of people below poverty line
and 1.4 lakhs of people living in urban areas, make up a percentage of 25.0% of population.
 Aims and objectives of the study

1) To find out the income level.

2) To examine the accessibility to basic needs.

3) To analyze the impact of small business on living standards

 Methodology

We used primary methods for collecting the information for our project on grocery shops. It was
executed by observation and personal interviewing and questionnaire. We surveyed 30 people
which include 25 males and 5 females in Kuda village, Dimapur. All the data acquired are primary
data which were obtained by surveying the people. The methods such as personal interview and
questionnaire were used in collecting the data.
 Literature review

Poverty in India-Dandekar & Rath (1971)

A concept of Poverty "A study of poverty of the nations has a greater relevance today even after
so many measures have been taken by various governments and International organizations to
eradicate the global poverty because mass poverty exists in vast areas of Asia, Africa and Latin
American countries. Even the developed countries have some pockets of mass poverty. However,
the problem is acute in the developing countries. The poverty has its origin in the feudalistic
relations of production. The collective degradation of hundreds of millions of human beings with
such mass poverty is a shocking commentary on the whole texture of human existence as well as
the true content of apparent human values in the third world, or perhaps in the world as a whole."

Rural Poverty in India-Dr. Sudeshna Gosh

Poverty is a multifaceted concept, which may include social, economic and political elements. It
can also be define as ,’when a person have little or no access to livelihood or jobs’ .Poverty can
be cause due to inequality ,poor education ,limited capacity of the government job ,etc ,.However
in India ,a developing countries poverty issue has been reached upon extensively .Although India
adopted open market policies in its effort to support itself with the globalised economy .However
it has become clear that this growth has not illuminated the lives of the population and has actually
result in the division between the rich and the poor .The rural poor are more than the urban poor
and suffer more poverty differences cut across gender race and geographical local i.e., urban
&rural

Global Poverty –Bharti Thakar (ICFAI University)

Poverty is not having enough material possessions or income for a person's needs. Poverty is a
multifaceted concept, which may include social, economic, and political elements.

During the first four decades of development studies (1950-90), poverty was primarily measured
in money metric form, either from household income or consumption expenditure. The limitation
of money-metric poverty to capture the multiple deprivations of human life and the development
of the capability approach (Sen, 1985) led to growing interest to measure poverty in a
multidimensional space. The evolution of the human development paradigm in 1990 led to a strong
theoretical foundation to measure multidimensional poverty. Following the UNDP’s methodology,
several researchers have contributed towards measurement of multidimensional poverty. Most of
these studies used the dimensions of education, health and services available for people struggling
financially, and a lack of job opportunities only compounds standard of living and a few studies
included subjective well-being such as fear of facing hardship.

Poverty in Human Well-Being (Ahluwalia.M.S)

Poverty is perhaps the most stubborn and deeply ingrained within the society ,poverty is broadly
define as unacceptable deprivation of well-being which is multidimensional .People living in
poverty tend to be highly vulnerable to adverse events outside their control and lead and an
existence denied of the basic access to a meaningful life. Poverty can be either “absolute “or ’’
relative’’. Absolute poverty is described in terms of the inability to satisfy one’s basic minimum
needs that are necessary to maintain a minimum essential standard of living, say minimum
essential level of food and nutrition .Poverty is “relative” when it refers to the position of a
household or an individual in relation to the distribution of average income or consumption in a
specific region or economy.

The planning commission on 30thJuly, 1977, constituted a task force on projections of minimum
needs and effective consumption demand under the chairmanship of DR. Alagh.

The job of the Task force was to examine the existing structural studies on consumption patterns
and standards of living and the minimum needs with particular reference to the poorer section of
the population for the nation as a whole and its different region separately by rural and urban areas
.The task force defined the poverty line as per capita consumption expenditure level which meets
the average per capita daily calorie requirements of 2400 Kcal in rural areas and 2100 kcal in
urban areas along with the associated quantum of expenditure on non-food items such as clothing
,shelter ,transport, education and health care.

Chronic Poverty in India –Asha Kapur Metha &Amita Shah

This paper tries to summarise the research files that are related to chronic poverty in India and
identify the agenda for further research. In an overview of the trend in incidence of income poverty
in India Is provided so as to place chronic poverty in context. It view chronic poverty in tons of
security extended duration and multidimensional deprivation. It tries to identify the state and
region that have a high evidence of people with income below the poverty line so as to focus
attention on areas that are spatial poverty traps.

Poverty is the sum total of a multiplicity of factor that include not just income and calorie intake
but also access to lend and credit, nutrition, health and longevity etc. This paper tried to examine
the nature of chronic poverty within the spatial poverty traps or remote rural areas.

The term ‘The poor’ actually refers to ‘different sociological realities’ chronic poverty could result
from transient phenomenon and sudden shock such as crops failure. The impacts of such shocks
can be transient in the event of household selling their assets or boring or generating income from
alternative employment opportunities however if the household has no assets to sell no access to
credit or borrow at speculative rates of interest and gets into a debt trap, these shocks have a long
duration ramification in terms of pushing the household below the poverty line. Poverty can hit
anyone at any time but there are some group who most vulnerable to poverty such as:

1. Schedule caste and schedule tribe.

2. Gender.

3. Older person.

4. The disabled etc.

Food security is an essential element of overall human well being and an important milestone on
the path of complete poverty alleviation.

Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen. defined fixed security by emphasizing consumption, demand,
supply and accessibility of fixed to the vulnerable people in terms of entitlement and endowment.

According to Professor Amartya Sen ‘endowment’ and ‘exchange entitlement’ are essential to
achieve fixed security.
There are six main types of poverty according to Eric Jensen’s study from Teaching with Poverty
in Mind (2009). He lists these six types as situational, generational, absolute, relative, urban, and
rural. Here’s a brief description of each type of poverty:

Situation: This particular type of poverty is usually temporary as it involves a crisis or loss
occurring. Events connected with situational poverty include environmental disasters, divorce, or
severe health problems. A good example of situational poverty caused by an environmental
disaster would be the destruction of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Many people were
homeless, lost their jobs, and had nothing to their name. The fall of the economy Situational can
also considered an event that could cause situational poverty.

Generational: This type of poverty involves the birth of two generations into poverty. Because they
were born into this situation, they usually don’t have the tools to help get them out of it.

Relative: This type of poverty is known as relative because it is relative to the average standard of
living in that person’s society. What is considered high income in one country could be considered
middle or low income in another. If a family’s income isn’t enough to meet the average standard
of living, they are considered to be in relative poverty.

Urban: This particular type of poverty is only for metropolitan areas with populations over 50,000.
Overcrowding, violence, noise, and poor community help programs make it even more difficult
for people suffering of this type of poverty to get out of it.

Rural: Like urban poverty above, rural poverty occurs only in specific area types. These areas are
nonmetropolitan with populations below 50,000. The low population limits the problem.

Data interpretation:

1) AGE GROUP OF THE SHOPKEEPERS:

 20-30 years 8 26.67%
30-40 years 15 50%
40-50 years 7 23..33%
Total 30 100%

2) GENDER
Male 25 83.33%
Female 5 16.67%
Total 30 100%

3) INCOME PER MONTH OF THE SHOPEEPERS:

Below 10k 15 50%
10k-60k 11 36.67%
Above 60k 4 13.33%
Total 30 100%

4) EDUCATION:
Yes 15 50%
No 15 50%
Total 30 100%

5) MEALS PER DAY:

Twice a day 23 76.67%
Thrice a day 7 23.33%
Total 30 100%

6) SANITATION:
Good 25 83.33%
Bad 5 16.67%
Total 30 100%

7) HEALTHCARE:
Every month 7 23.33%
When I/We get sick 21 70%
Never 2 6.67%
Total 30 100%

8) SOURCE OF WATER:
Ring well 8 26.67%
Water pump 21 70%
Market supply 1 3.33%
Total 30 100%

Findings
1. Most of the shopkeepers that we interviewed were dependent on their shops for their
living while some have other source of income.
2. Majority of the shops were established between, 2005-2012.
3. Majority of the shops agreed that their experience in this business was neutral.
4. The most sold items/commodities were potato chips (Rs.10-20), cold drinks (Rs10-40)
and pan (Rs.10).
5. The average expenditure of a shop in a month is Rs.15400.
6. The average income of a shop in a month is Rs 27800.
7. Majority of the shop keepers have a family consisting of 2-3 members.
8. Majority of the shopkeepers takes two meals a day.
9. Most of the shopkeepers do not have their own personal means of transportation.
10. According to our survey, we found that all the shopkeepers live/stay in rented
apartment/house.
11. As per our survey, 50% of the shopkeepers could afford education to their children.
12. By observing our survey we came across that there are positive impact in the live of the
shopkeepers by starting their businesses as they could effort to pay for their shelter,
proper water facilities and meet the needs of their day to day live.
13. The business owners also by managing the grocery shop are able to uplift the standard of
living of their family. The business also provides them a sense of security.
14. From our survey we found that kuda village is urban area not a rural area.

Conclusion
From the data that we collected through surveying and interviewing the small business owners, we
can conclude that small business has played a large role in the life of some people and it has kept
them from falling into poverty. Some of the subjects that we surveyed had their own families, and
their children also went to schools, considering their shops are their only means of income. Most
of them live in rented house and have proper sanitation for their livelihood. They have proper
means of water sources such as wells and pumps. Some of them earn less than Rs 10,000 in a
month but still manage to live prosperous lives with proper necessities. Therefore we can conclude
that small business has helped them to lift up and alleviate themselves from poverty.

References :
 The measurement of poverty in India- A structural approach- Ingvild Almas, Anders
Kjelsrud & Rohini Somanathan
 Poverty in India-Dandekar & Rath (1971)
 Rural Poverty in India-Dr. Sudeshna Gosh
 Global Poverty –Bharti Thakar (ICFAI University)
 Poverty in Human Well-Being (Ahluwalia.M.S)
 Chronic Poverty in India –Asha Kapur Metha &Amita Shah
 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty
 https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/india
 https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview
 https://nagalandnews.wordpress.com/tag/nagaland-poverty-datastatistics/
 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_business
 Appendix

Dear sir/madam,

We, the students of B.A. 2nd semester (Economics honors), ICFAI University, Nagaland are doing a
project on “The role of small business in poverty alleviation (Kuda Village)”. So we request you to kindly
fill up these questions and also assure that the information provided by you will be kept confidential and
used only for academic purposes.

1. Name: _______________________

2. Age: _____

3. Gender:
☐Male ☐Female

4. Occupation (other than this): __________________

5. Year of establishment: __________

6. Your experience in this business:
☐Very good ☐Good ☐Neutral
☐Bad ☐Very bad

Give Reason(s): _____________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

7. Which item/commodity do you sell the most in a day? Rank them in order of demand along with
their respective prices.
a. __________________________________
b. __________________________________
c. __________________________________

8. What is the total cost you incur per month (expenditure)?

_____________________

9. What is your total income/revenue in a month?

_____________________

Income for the past 5 months:

a. May - _____________
b. April- _____________
c. March- ___________
d. February- _________
e. January- __________

10. Do you have a family?

☐Yes ☐No
If yes, how many members?
_____________

11. How many family members are engaged in jobs?

_____________

12. Do your children go to school?

 ☐Yes ☐No
If yes, private or government? And up to which standard?
_____________________

13. Do you have proper sanitation (toilets/bathrooms)?

☐Yes ☐No

14. How often do you go for checkups?

☐every month ☐When I/we get sick
☐Never
Give reason(s):
______________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________
___________________________________________________________

15. How many meals do you take in a day?

____________

16. Do you own your present accommodation (house/apartment) or rent it?

☐Owned outright ☐being bought on mortgage
☐Rent from local ☐Rent from private landlord
Authority

17. Do you have a personal means of transport?

☐Yes ☐No

18. How has this business impacted your family?

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_______