Essay Sample on Mumbai: Wealthy City With Extreme Poverty at its Core

Introduction

Mumbai, India, is a city of inequity. It is the 12th wealthiest city in the world, with an approximated wealth of $950 billion (The Economic Times, 2018). Most of this success is attributed to famous India's stock exchange and a large billionaire population. Simultaneously, it inhabits over half of its population in slums denoted as areas of extreme poverty because of lack of public transportation, electricity, and water. Unlike in other cities, they sit at the core of its economy. This phenomenon has led to distinct geography where crowded single-story buildings border the most expensive high-rise buildings in Mumbai city. Therefore, as the gap between the rich and poor increases in Mumbai, this imbalance has initiated different unfortunate side effects such as malnutrition, increased child labor, and lack of education opportunities among children.

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One of the significant impacts of poverty in Mumbai is malnutrition. Although the issue is spread among all populations, it mostly affects children. The majority of low-income families living in slums in Mumbai do not have access to an adequate nutrition diet for their children. Thus, their children suffer from serious health complications such as physical disabilities and low body weight. According to Rabadi (2017), approximately 45% of annual child mortality in Mumbai maybe be linked to malnutrition. Therefore, due to poverty in there has been increased infant mortality among children due to malnutrition.

Poverty has also led to increased cases of child labor in Mumbai. Despite child labor being prohibited in India for children under 14 years, Jacobs and Misra (2017) report that out of 33 million children working in India, those residing in Mumbai are approximately 60% of this number. Besides, the Aid agencies believe that in reality, Mumbai resides the highest number of children aged 6 to 14 years who are working (Oxfamadmin, 2015). They work in private households, quarries, and factories to supplement insufficient incomes in their families. Instead of these children being in school, they work to secure survival for both themselves and their families.

Lack of proper education is also another severe effect caused by poverty. A report released by UNICEF reveals that approximately 25% of children have no access to education in India, where among the 60% live in Mumbai (Shah, 2013). These statistics also show that girls comprised the highest population compared to their male counterparts (Shah, 2013). Because of poverty, most parents motivate their daughters to get married early in anticipation of good lives (Sharma, 2015). They are, therefore, denied education opportunities, which denies them chances to deprive themselves of poverty later in life.

Conclusion

Despite Mumbai being a wealthy city, it has the highest number of people living in slums in extreme poverty. Among them, children are the most affected group. Poverty causes malnutrition, child labor, and denial of education opportunities among them. Therefore, to solve problems encountered by children due to poverty, the government of India should initiate a project that provides high income to their parents as well as thoroughly implement the formulated laws against child labor and breach of the right of education for children.

References

Jacobs, J., & Misra, R. (2017). Child labor: The inconvenient truth behind India's growth story. Retrieved 29 January 2020, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/08/21/child-labor-the-inconvenient-truth-behind-indias-growth-story/

Oxfamadmin. (2015). Ten facts on illiteracy in India that you must know. Retrieved 29 January 2020, from https://www.oxfamindia.org/featuredstories/10-facts-illiteracy-india-you-must-know

Rabadi, K. (2017). 45% Of Child Mortality Can Be Attributed To Malnutrition, And It's An Emergency. Retrieved 29 January 2020, from https://www.huffingtonpost.in/kreeanne-rabadi/45-of-children-in-india-die-due-to-malnutrition-and-it-s-an-em_a_22029642/

Shah, A. (2013). Poverty facts and stats. Global Issues, 7. Retrieved from http://reducetheburden.org/poverty-facts-and-stats/

Sharma, I. (2015). Violence against women: Where are the solutions?. Indian journal of psychiatry, 57(2), 131. doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.158133

The Economic Times. (2018). Mumbai 12th richest city globally; total wealth at USD 950 billion. Retrieved 29 January 2020, from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/mumbai-12th-richest-city-globally-total-wealth-at-usd-950-billion/articleshow/62870741.cms?from=mdr