Social Security Challenges and Human Development in India

Social security has always been an important instrument for securing social and economic justice in a
country. India being a primarily developing country with a vast population requiring a boost from the
government, the role of social security cannot be overemphasized. The economy is made up of three
categories of resources i.e. land, labour and capital, collectively known as „factors of production‟. Out of
these, human resource is the most important. The term „human resource‟ includes a set of individuals who
make up the workforce of a nation. The extent of utilization of other resources depends on the will,
capacity and skill of human resources. Human Resource Development is inevitable for economic
development of a country. HRD deals with all aspects of human development whether they relate to
poverty, education, gender discrimination , denial of human rights, environmental concerns, etc. India has
an abundance of human resources. The total population of our country is over 1.277 billion people. A lot
has been done by our government in the recent years but still a lot more is needed to be done. In India, the
quality of human resources needs to be developed and maintained. Providing „Social Security‟ to people is
one such way of achieving this objective. It is considered as an integral part of development process.
Social security schemes are important for providing a feeling of security among workers and raising their
standard of living. People can plan their future accordingly.
Various social security schemes for the benefit of workers have been framed in India in the form of
various legislations. The various Central Acts on social security have been examined in the light of the
recommendations of 2nd national commission on labour. Relevant amendments have been done in many
of these acts from time to time and the consultation process regarding amendment in few others is still
underway.
Social Security, though not novel, is still an underdeveloped concept for a country where at least 30% of
population continue to live in poverty and where old age is often accompanied by extreme destitution for
many. The current programs covers only a small portion of population and is primarily employer driven,
limiting its scope to help the vast majority of people. Though recently, India‟s Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has launched many social security schemes yet a lot more efforts are required. The flaws in these
Social security measures are required to be dealt with in an appropriate manner