Multi-dimensional Poverty among the Persons with Disability in India

Disability and poverty are strongly associated with each other, especially in the developing economies where 80 per cent of the total disabled persons of the world live. Most of the studies agree that poverty is a cause as well as consequence of disability. Since poverty is a complex phenomenon and includes many deprivations, therefore, this study aims to explore the poverty rates among the persons with disability through uni-dimensional as well as multi-dimensional approach. For this purpose, the methodology suggested by Alkire and Foster (2008) has been used on the data provided by National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) of India on ‘Employment and Unemployment Situation ’(three rounds 2004–05, 2009-10and 2011–12). The results of the study showed that the proportion of the persons with temporary or lower degree of disability increased from 51.35 per cent in 2004–05 to 58.76 per cent in 2011–12, while that of the persons with severe degree of disability came down from about 47 to 40 per cent during this period. The results revealed that in absence of the supportive infrastructure, persons with disabilities experience lower educational attainments, lower employment, worse living conditions, and higher poverty rates.