Abstract:
Our objectives in this paper are two-fold: an interpretation of the
conception of poverty in its multidimensional existence and an explanation
in this light of the development experiences of the State of Kerala in India.
We discuss the various implications of the links and linkages among human
rights, freedom and development to develop a theoretical framework.
Within this, we start from the original conception of poverty in terms of
minimum rights to resources, by which people are seen as entitled, as
citizens, to a minimum income. We extend it to the comprehensive
conception of development as freedom, a la AK Sen, approaching poverty
in terms of right to freedom. We argue that political freedom has substantial
linkages towards social and economic freedom, all together constituting
development, seen as ‘removal of major sources of unfreedom’ of both
income and non-income dimensions. In the hard core constitution of
development/poverty, seen in terms of the most basic human right to life,
the former (income dimension) specifies the right to resources, and thus
to employment guarantee, while the latter signifies the right to building up
human capital by means especially of health and education. This highlights
the significance of the role of the state in opening up opportunities, that is,
creating capabilities. Here individual freedom is taken up as a social
commitment. We argue that community participation in development
process through decentralisation of state power and functionings constitutes
an autonomous and hence ideal means of targeting and tackling
development issues through co-operatives. This in turn implies that the
degree of decentralisation of power of a state is an indicator of its concern
for and commitment to human development. This all the more becomes
pertinent in the context of liberalisation drives by a state in its teleological
transformation of role reduction. And the liberalisation drives by the
concerned state thus imply a human rights violation. It is in this theoretical
light that we attempt to interpret the ‘Kerala Model’.
