Illustration/Survey: City Air News
Ludhiana, August 23, 2013: Rs. 33 per day in slums will not stop them from being called poor, the conditions in which these people are living are not up to the defined standards given by recent poverty statistics by Government of India (GoI).
Reality is far away from statistics as people did not have access to clean water, sanitation and what to talk about rest. Most of the children in slums have never stepped into any school and having access to information is totally a myth for this growing India.
These are the major findings of the survey conducted by students of B.Com second year at PCTE group of institutes. The survey was conducted under the guidance of Shweta Miglani, Senior Faculty, Department of Business Management PCTE. Students conducted research in Ludhiana city in selected areas for carrying out survey. The areas selected were slums near Bhagat Singh Nagar, Kitchlu Nagar, Haibowal Area, Dugri and Jamalpur etc.
Shweta said that most of the people had an average family size of 4 to 5 but have only one or two as their working members. During the survey students found that most of the people are earning Rs.2,500 to Rs.3,000 per month and maximum amount is spend upon basic human need i.e. food. When asked, majority of them said that their income is just to feed their family and if they are left with something, same goes towards their health expenses.
Dr. K.N.S Kang, Director General PCTE Group of institutes said that this survey truly indicates the actual situation of peoples living in slums. He said that government definition of below poverty line people and statistics are not truly reflecting the actual reality on ground. He congratulated the faculty and students for the efforts and said that PCTE students are developed and groomed through such activities which not only help to develop their logical base but also help them in understanding the economic aspects better.