Inter-lInkages between PoPulatIon DynamIcs anD DeveloPment In ...

incidence of poverty among certain marginalised groups, for example, the Scheduled Tribes, has hardlydeclined at all. Since population has also grown, the absolute number of poor people has declined marginallyfrom 320 million in 1993/94 to 302 million in 2004/05.The Eleventh Plan strategy recognises that the composition of the poor has been changing and it analyses thecomposition in terms of occupation, social status, rural-urban divide and sex. In view of the multiple deprivationsof the poor, while arguing for inclusive growth, it also includes directly-targeted poverty reduction programmes:• Guaranteed wage employment;• Self-employment-Swaranjayanti Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY);• Rural housing for the houseless; and• Social protection: National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) and associated programmes.While these programmes have ambitious coverage objectives, it is unclear what proportion of unmet need willbe met through these directly targeted programmes.EducationA significant effort is planned to improve access to education at all levels:ElementaryeducationLiteracySecondaryeducationHigher andtechnicaleducationThe Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) is the principle programme for universal access toelementary education - access, enrolment, retention, achievement, and equity. It willaddress all aspects of elementary education covering over one million elementary schoolsand 200 million children.To achieve 80% literacy rate and reduce gender gap in literacy to 10%, the NationalLiteracy Mission (NLM) will be revamped to enhance its effectiveness.Concerned with low gross enrolment ratios and glaring inter-state and intra-state variations,the Eleventh Plan strategy seeks to (i) universalise access to secondary education; (ii)ensure good quality education; and (iii) aim towards major reduction in gender, social andregional gaps in enrolments, dropouts, and school retention. Therefore, it sets a norm ofproviding for a secondary school within 5 km and a higher secondary school within 7-8km of every habitation.Considerable expansion in institutions providing higher and technical education issought.Health and Family WelfareIndia is in the midst of an epidemiological and demographic transition with increasing burden of chronicdiseases, decline in mortality and fertility rates, and ageing of the population. An estimated 2 to 3.1 millionpeople in the country are living with HIV/AIDS. The burden of chronic diseases was estimated to account for53% of all deaths and 44% of Disability Adjusted Life Years lost in 2005. The Eleventh Plan sets specificgoals to be achieved in women and child health - reduction in MMR, IMR, TFR, malnutrition and anaemia,and raise the SRB. To bring about a rapid improvement in health and reduce inequities, the Plan includesseveral initiatives:• NRHM. Was launched to address infirmities and problems across PHC and bring about improvement inthe health system and health status of those living in rural areas (discussed in more detail in Chapter 3 onPromising Practices in Integrating Population Dynamics and Development);• National Urban Health Mission. Is being prepared to meet the health needs of the urban poor, particularlythe slum dwellers, by making available to them essential PHC services. This will be through investing inhigh calibre health professionals, appropriate technology through PPP, and health insurance for the urbanpoor;• Special vertical programmes. Although no vertical disease-specific programme structures will be createdbelow district level, several programmes operate and their functioning will be integrated horizontally.12