Reconfiguring Poverty Alleviation in India: Structural Barriers, Policy Gaps, and the Political Economy of Exclusion

Abstract

This study critically examines the structural and institutional dimensions of poverty in India by integrating recent empirical evidence and policy evaluations to conduct a multidimensional analysis. Drawing on over 32 interdisciplinary sources, it identifies caste, land ownership, and economic inequality as enduring drivers of exclusion compounded by policy gaps in healthcare, education, and employment. This study evaluates the performance of flagship welfare schemes, including MGNREGA, PM-Kisan, PM-JAY, and NFSA, highlighting implementation challenges, such as biometric exclusions, targeting inefficiencies, and governance opacity. This study proposes an integrated poverty alleviation framework grounded in participatory governance, ethical digital infrastructure, and an intersectional policy design. It concludes by advocating future-ready strategies that combine structural reform with inclusive technology-enabled service delivery. This study addresses critical research gaps, particularly the overreliance on cross-sectional surveys and the limited integration of intersectional and institutional perspectives in poverty research. Using a systematic review methodology, it synthesizes insights across economics, sociology, and public policy while incorporating recent datasets such as NITI Aayog’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (2023), NSSO (2021), and PLFS (2022). The analysis emphasizes compounded disadvantages experienced by Dalit women, Muslim households, persons with disabilities, and urban slum dwellers, thereby broadening the national scope of inquiry. By linking structural drivers with policy gaps, the study contributes both to academic debates and to the design of regionally nuanced, participatory, and inclusive poverty alleviation strategies.