"Addressing Social Issues in India" offers a comprehensive exploration of the myriad challenges shaping the socio-cultural fabric of the nation. The book delves into the diverse landscape of social issues, beginning with an insightful overview in the first chapter. Subsequent chapters meticulously dissect the influence of government policies, the pivotal role played by NGOs and grassroots movements, and the impact of media on public perceptions. The narrative extends to encompass the dynamic contributions of youth activism and the persistent struggles against poverty, educational inequities, gender inequality, and the historical legacy of the caste system. The book investigates religious harmony, healthcare challenges, environmental stewardship, corruption, child labor, human trafficking, LGBTQ+ rights, and the repercussions of rapid urbanization. The concluding chapters envision a more inclusive future, synthesizing collective efforts and proposing a roadmap for a socially just and equitable India. "Addressing Social Issues in India" serves as an indispensable resource for scholars, policymakers, and activists committed to fostering positive change in the country.

From UNDP s Human Development Index to the more recent Multidimensional Poverty Index, there have been conceptualizations and frameworks towards understanding social development. However, there have not been consistent efforts by governments, multilateral agencies, NGOs and disciplinary leaders in the academia towards contextualising the different concepts and frameworks for addressing social development. This book attempts to aggregate the various strands of discourse relating to social sector development in India from the academic and practitioners world. Social sector issues are not limited to health, education and housing, but encompass concerns relating to agriculture, food security, rural development, gender and livelihoods. Within that broad canvass, the objective of this collection of papers is to assess the performance and analyse the challenges of social sector programmes, policies and remaining issues."

This book explores the intersectional perspective of sustainable social development in key sectors, such as education and skill development, health and nutrition, gender concerns, and food security and agriculture in India. It delves into contemporary concerns of poverty, employment and inclusive growth, and social marginalisation and inequality. The volume brings together the contributions of various stakeholders from academia, research organisations, NGOs and policymakers to address social-sector issues and sustainable development goals (SDGs) in the Indian context. It reflects on policies, strategies and performance in the context of Constitutional goals and the commitment to global SDGs and examines the character and contours of social development in the country. Comprehensive and topical, this volume will be useful to scholars, researchers, policymakers and practitioners of development studies, political studies, sociology and development economics.

As education and health are two major areas of concern in the context of social sector development and human development achievements, this book explores their situation in India. The liberalisation of the Indian economy had a major impact on the growth rate of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), with the economic growth of the country jumping from the so-called Hindu growth rate of 3.5% to 8–9% per annum. The literacy rate increased to 74.04% in 2011 from 12% in 1947, while the universalization of elementary education has been achieved to a great extent, and dropout rates have decreased. However, despite considerable progress, exclusions and wide disparities still exist. Combining access with affordability and ensuring quality with good governance and adequate finance are still of great concern. On the health front, significant achievements have also been made, with a number of diseases eradicated or on the verge of elimination. There has been a substantial drop in the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), and life expectancy has increased from 36.7 years in 1951 to 67.14 in 2011. The crude birth rate has been reduced from 40.8 in 1951 to 20.6 in 2012, and the crude death rate from 25.1 to 7.43 in the same period. These achievements are impressive, but at the same time our failures appear even more glaring. As such, this volume brings together contributions from eminent Indian scholars on a range of social issues, including linkages between growth, poverty and the social sector; the efficiency of social sector spending in India; disparity in health statuses; IPR protection in health innovations; pollution and health; the universalisation of elementary education; problems faced at the higher levels of education; and issues of child labour.

In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called determinants of health. Only part of an individual's health status depends on his or her behavior and choice; community-wide problems like poverty, unemployment, poor education, inadequate housing, poor public transportation, interpersonal violence, and decaying neighborhoods also contribute to health inequities, as well as the historic and ongoing interplay of structures, policies, and norms that shape lives. When these factors are not optimal in a community, it does not mean they are intractable: such inequities can be mitigated by social policies that can shape health in powerful ways. Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity seeks to delineate the causes of and the solutions to health inequities in the United States. This report focuses on what communities can do to promote health equity, what actions are needed by the many and varied stakeholders that are part of communities or support them, as well as the root causes and structural barriers that need to be overcome.

Drawing from the work of academics and practitioners from ten states across the country, this edited volume showcases and synthesises the diversity and richness of efforts to understand and act on the social determinants of health in India, the conditions in which we are born, grow, live work and age. Such an effort is salient in the current era of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), which have foregrounded the issue of equity and the need for a comprehensive, multi-sectoral agenda for health and development. In India, particularly in the last decade, there have been myriad efforts to more critically theorise and intervene in areas with bearing on health, like conflict, nutrition or urbanisation, or to address the concerns of vulnerable groups like women, children and the elderly. From these efforts emerge lessons of convergence for academic and policymaking institutions in India who are looking to operationalise and bring life to the SDG agenda in India and other Low and Middle Income Country settings. The book comprises eleven chapters and six short commentaries that appear in conversation with each other, as well as an annexure of validated, ready-to-use indicators for monitoring of social determinants of health.

Focusing on social work and social service delivery, this book examines the social policies and programmes designed to address different societal issues and concerns across India and China. It focuses on gaining understanding of design and delivery of social welfare policies related to special interest groups, highlighting important contemporary challenges such as child labour, child abuse, exploitation of women, problems related to disabled people, mental health issue, illiteracy and unemployment. Offering a comparative perspective, the book considers the impact of political administration in both countries to critically assess key issues related to social welfare in two different political, economic, social, and cultural contexts.

India has become one of the world's emerging powers, rivaling China in terms of global influence. Yet many people know relatively little about the economic, social, political, and cultural changes unfolding in India today. To what extent are people benefiting from the economic boom? In what ways is education transforming society? And how is India's culture industry responding to technological change? In this "Very Short Introduction", Craig Jeffrey provides a compelling account of the recent history of India, investigating the contradictions that are plaguing modern India and the manner in which people, especially young people, are actively remaking the country in the twenty first century. -- From publisher's description.

From one of the leading policy experts of our time, an urgent rethinking of how we can better support each other to thrive Whether we realize it or not, all of us participate in the social contract every day through mutual obligations among our family, community, place of work, and fellow citizens. Caring for others, paying taxes, and benefiting from public services define the social contract that supports and binds us together as a society. Today, however, our social contract has been broken by changing gender roles, technology, new models of work, aging, and the perils of climate change. Minouche Shafik takes us through stages of life we all experience—raising children, getting educated, falling ill, working, growing old—and shows how a reordering of our societies is possible. Drawing on evidence and examples from around the world, she shows how every country can provide citizens with the basics to have a decent life and be able to contribute to society. But we owe each other more than this. A more generous and inclusive society would also share more risks collectively and ask everyone to contribute for as long as they can so that everyone can fulfill their potential. What We Owe Each Other identifies the key elements of a better social contract that recognizes our interdependencies, supports and invests more in each other, and expects more of individuals in return. Powerful, hopeful, and thought-provoking, What We Owe Each Other provides practical solutions to current challenges and demonstrates how we can build a better society—together.