Trade Liberalization in India : Poverty’s Pal or Foe?

Poverty is the greatest challenge to the mankind. Gandhi, described poverty as worst form of violence. Poverty may be defined as a state of spiritual and financial deprivation, preventing people from attaining their full potential and realizing their self fulfillment. Since decades, the development economist’s worlds wide are worried about the solution to eradicate poverty. The solutions suggested from time to time include providing education, health facilities, land reforms, micro credits, self help groups, infrastructure, debt relief programmes, public vaccine programmes. The governments too acting on the suggestions of the good economists tried to boost purely the economic growth indicators especially the GNP and Per capita income expecting trickledown effect thereby effecting in reduction of poverty. Alan L Winter (1999) opines that the trade liberalization is generally the positive contributor to poverty alleviation. Trade allows people to exploit their productive potential, assists economic growth curtails arbitrary policy intervention and helps to insulate shocks.The trade liberalization in India has resulted in lessening of subsidies, importing of food stuffs, corporate farming, lessening of government budgetary support has led to the destruction of farmers livelihood. It appears that Trade liberalization does not have any direct impact on poverty reduction in India. In India the poverty is much complicated and complex issue. It not only the requires integrated approach of developing skills among the poor, providing employment, increasing nutrition level, providing health facilities and infrastructure facility. But also require proper will on the part of the policy makers and the bureaucrats to implement the well prepared polices