Poverty is a
major problem from which India has been suffering since an extremely long time.
Poverty is quite a subjective topic and cannot have one ‘right’ definition.
Each country can describe it in their own way according to the conditions of their
own economy. Although, in a broad way it may be described as a state in which
an individual is unable to fulfil even his basic needs of life.

The basic
reasons are the social factors. The quality of education provided to the poor
children is not good enough for them to change their future and therefore, they
end up being poor. This cycle goes on due to the lack of money. Here are some
of the major causes of poverty in India.

1.INEQUALITY

During the
five-year plan period, the national income of the country has been increasing
but the problem arises when it is not being distributed among the different
sections of people equally. Majority of this income goes to those who are
already rich leaving the poor with close to nothing. This inequality has widened
the problem of poverty.

2.BACKWARD
AGRICULTURE

In India,
the natural as well as the physical resources are underutilized due to the lack
of technology and capital. Therefore, the production is low in the country.
Even the technology available in the agricultural sector lack irrigation
facility and they do not have high-yielding variety of seeds. This also results
in the increase of poverty as their quality of life id still low.

3.BORROWINGS

The poor, in
order to survive financially, borrow money from government banks or rich money
lenders. For this borrowed money, they have to pay an interest which is set
quite high. This leads them to end up in a vicious cycle of borrowings. This
cycle continues from one generation to another making it impossible for them to
save.

4.HIGH RATE
OF POPULATION GROWTH

Because of
the increase in the population, the burden of dependency ahs increased.
Therefore, to provide for the family’s basic needs becomes an exceedingly big
problem. This high rate of population also indicates lower health facilities
and other crucial amenities which leads to the standard of living being low.

5.SOCIAL
CAUSES

Many social
factors such as caste, religion, gender, joint family system and others have
hindered the economic growth. Majority of the population still being orthodox
and not ready to change and move on ha vastly affected the growth of the
country.

6.UNEMPLOYMENT

Because of a
high level of unemployment, the number of dependency of people on the employed
ones has increased. As a result, the consumption expenditure per head is
decline because there is only so much one person can provide for a family.
Consequence – most of such families are living below the poverty line.

7.ILLITERACY

It is no
hidden fact that a high percentage of our population is illiterate. Due to
this, the farmers have absolutely no idea about the efforts and initiatives
taken by government that may help them with their financial condition. Also,
they are unaware of the new technologies and tools for cultivation being introduced
in the market. This also leads to the money lenders cheating them and
extracting more money from them.

 Cryptocurrency
is basically a virtual currency that is not possible to imitate. The
‘cryptocurrency’ is derived from the encryption techniques. These
cryptocurrencies are based on blockchain technologies. A blockchain, in simple
words, means a database to keep records about the holders of the currency.
Because these currencies are digitally operated and not issued by any
government agents or authorities, there is eventually no political interference
or manipulation.

 The first even blockchain launched
cryptocurrency was Bitcoin which till date is the most famous crypto. Apart
from that, there are various other currencies with different functions
available in the market now that it has become such a hot topic.

Bitcoin was
launched in 2009 by a group known as ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’. Over 18.8 Million
crypto are being circulated in the market with a total market cap of $858.9
Billion as of August 2021 and there are only 21 Million currencies available
leading to the reduction of chances of both inflation and manipulation. Some of
the other alternate currencies include Litecoin, Peercoin, Namecoin, Ethereum,
Cardano and Eos.

Crypto
generally allow for safe payments online which are referred as ‘tokens’ and the
ledger entries of these exchange of tokens are stored digitally. Many investors
make money out of these currencies by selling them to other investors at a
profit.

Cryptocurrencies
claim that it makes it easier for financial transactions between two parties as
it does not require any third party that needs to be trusted with their money.
These transactions are secured by a private key. A private key is one that is
only known by the owner of the account and is used by him to sign away
transactions. This uses the least of transaction fees unlike the banks and
other financial institutions which charge a certain amount for wire transfer.

A downside
of these currency is that it is partially anonymous which makes it easier for
illegal business like tax evasion and money laundering. However, this anonymity
is highly valued by some individuals considering it acts like a protection for
those activists who live under a repressive government.

The market
price of any product depends upon its demand and supply and similar theory
applies to cryptocurrency. The rate at which one currency can be exchanged for
another can fluctuate widely which makes it a risky business to invest in. The
cost of producing a crypto, especially Bitcoin, which is an extremely large
amount, depends upon its market price.

It is also a
fact that only the blockchain of these currencies are digitally secured. The
other aspects of it like ‘wallets’ and ‘exchanges’ are not highly secured. They
are still prone to hacking and in the past 10 years, there have been cases of
millions of dollars being stolen via hacking of some mere coins.

The fact
cannot be ignored that cryptocurrency has only been in the market for 10 years.
It is not some gold or a piece of land that can be bought and guarantee you a
profit in future. It is a completely different and new technology that needs
knowledge and awareness. Just like stock market, one needs to be fully educated
before investing their valuable money into this business.

It is no
denying now that the world is shifting towards digital platform. All the
businesses, companies and oraganisations have their own consumer friendly
websites so that their audience’s experience can be better. This digital transformation
has encouraged every businessman to rapidly change their ways of trade and cope
up with the dynamic environment. It is very well said that “to improve is to
change, to be perfect is to change often.”

Although
this digital transformation came in the picture a few years ago, the global
pandemic has given it an accelerating push and every digitalization is the most
common option people choose to promote out themselves. One thing to learn from
this is that nothing is constant or predictable.

According to
EY Future Consumer Index, 43% of the consumers, post pandemic, prefer to shop
online rather than buying using their previous method of going to the store
themselves. This only represents that geographical location is not as important
as it used to be in an era.

COVID-19 has
had a tremendously negative impact on almost all businesses especially the
retail business since the production of consumer goods was stopped to the
extent where the shops were seen completely empty a lot of times. In such a situation,
many retailers questioned their ability to create a new customer base according
to the new consumption habit. They wondered if their selling method is still
efficient enough to keep their customer’s trust in their brand.

Two of the
great examples of this would be Lululemon and Nike. With the world being put to
lockdown, the demand for athleisure increased remarkably mainly because
athleisure was a great choice for majority of the people to wear during
lockdown. They handled their business during such a crisis because of their
digital expertise and resources. Also, Lululemon diversified its products to
meet people’s changing demands.

A brand that
faced extreme loss due to COVID was Under Armour and Uniqlo. Its majority of
the sales was based on distributing their products amongst other retailers
which faced a drastic drop in its sales due to physical shops being shut.
Uniqlo is basically focused on football which also had to face a sharp downfall
because it couldn’t keep the interest of its consumers online as much as it
could in their physical stores.

The world’s
leading digital platforms have gained the most benefit due to the global
pandemic and majority of these large companies are based in USA and China. It
makes it difficult for some smaller companies or organizations to compete
against them and a make a known place of their own.

In order to
work swiftly with e-commerce, better understanding, skills and collaboration is
required. Post pandemic, more than 30 e-trade companies have partnered together
to acquire more opportunities and gain awareness regarding the risks that
raises due to COVID. Also, to identify the ways in which businesses in less
developed and developing countries can work their way out through these risks.
This step must be taken into consideration by all business men in order to
flaunt their business.

 The selling
of goods outside the national borders is known as the process of exporting. Its
process is an extremely time taking one with a whopping 17 steps involved. Here
it goes.

1.RECEIPT
OF ENQUIRY AND SENDING QUOTATION

The buyer
firstly sends out enquiries to the prospective exporters regarding the goods
that he requires. As the exporter receives it, he replies to it through a
quotation or ‘Performa Invoice’ where all the details asked by the
importer about the goods are mentioned.

2.RECEIPT
OF ORDER

If the
importer is satisfied with all the details and is ready to import goods, he
places an order to the exporter either directly or through a middleman. This
order or indent contains all the information regarding the goods like quality,
quantity, price, date and time, mode of payment, packaging instructions and
more.

3.SECURING
A GUARANTEE FOR PAYMENT

The exporter
needs surety that his payment would be made safely by the importer and that he
is in a good financial position. To ensure this, the exporter demands a ‘Letter
of Credit’ (LOC) which is issued by the importer’s bank that guarantees that
the importer is in a good financial position to meet his payments.

4.EXPORT
LICENSE AND IEC NUMBER

After the
assurance of his payment, he must move on with the formalities of the
procedure. In India, an exporter must have an export license because exporting
is subject to the customs law. Also, he needs to obtain an ‘Import Export
Code’ (IEC) from the ‘Directorate General Foreign Trade’ (DGFT)
since this number is mentioned on almost every document.

5.PRE-SHIPMENT
FINANCE

After the
license has been received, the exporter moves to his banker to obtain
pre-shipment finance which is required for the procurement of raw materials for
the production and processing, packaging materials and transportation of goods.

6.PROCUREMENT
OF GOODS

After the
finance, the exporter either obtains raw materials for the production of the
goods as per demanded by the importer or simply purchase the goods from the
market to export.

7.PRE-SHIPMENT
INSPECTION

In India,
there is an ‘Export Quality Control and Inspection Act, 1963’ according
to which certain goods needs complete inspection before being exported. If the
exporters goods falls under this category then he has to inform the ‘Export
Inspection Agency’ (EIA) which inspects and ensures that the goods are as
per demanded by the importer. After this, they issue a ‘certificate of
inspection’ which has to be sent to the importer along with other
documents.

8.EXCISE
CLEARANCE

According to
the Central Excise Tariff Act, an excise duty must be paid by a manufacturer to
produce goods in the country. The exporter contacts the Excise Commissioner
regarding this and when the Commissioner is satisfied, he issues an excise
clearance. However, this duty is returned to the manufacturer if the goods are
supposed to be exported. This return is known as ‘duty drawback’.

9.CERTIFICATE
OF ORIGIN

There are
some tariff concessions allowed in some countries to export goods. In order to
obtain these benefits, the importer might ask for a ‘certificate of origin’ to
prove sure that the goods have been produced in the country from where they are
being imported.

10.RESERVATION
OF SHIPPING SPACE

The exporter
needs to apply at a shipping company to reserve a ship for the consignment.
After the application has been approved, the company issues a ‘shipping
order’ which is a document containing instructions for the captain of the
ship to deliver the specified goods after the customs clearance at the assigned
port.

11.PACKING
AND FORWARDING

A ‘packing
list’ is a statement that contains the details of the number of packs being
shipped and the number of products in each pack. This list gives information
about the nature of the hoods being exported. After this, the exporter sends
the consignment to the port through road or railway. If railway is chosen as
the medium then, a ‘railway receipt’ (RR) is issued by the railway
authorities which is endorsed in the favor of the exporter’s agent who will
receive the goods from the railway station at the port.

12.INSURANCE
OF GOODS

The exporter
then gets the goods insured by an insurance company to protect them from any
damage or risk of loss due to the calamities of ocean during the
transportation.

13.CUSTOMS
CLEARANCE

For the
customs clearance, the exporter must prepare a ‘shipping bill’. This
bill is the main document on the basis of which the permission to export the
goods is granted by the customs office. After this bill, the port
superintendent is approached for ‘carting order’ which is an instruction
to the staff at the gate of the port to permit an entry of the cargo in the
dock.

14.MATE’S
RECEIPT

The goods
are then loaded on the ship and the captain of the ship or his mate (assistant)
issues a receipt to the port superintendent known as the ‘mate’s receipt’
which contains the information regarding the name of the ship, date of
shipment, description etc.. If the captain is not satisfied with the packaging
of the goods, then he may issue a ‘foul receipt’. The insurance company
may not bear the liability for the loss in case the exporter has received a
foul receipt.

15.ISSUANCE
OF BILL OF LADING

Next, the
exporter hands this receipt to the shipping company which then calculated the
freight charges and issues a ‘bill of lading’ which is a document that
serves as a proof that the shipping company has accepted the goods for carrying
it to the appointed port.

16.INVOICE
PREPARATION

After the
goods are exported, the exporter creates an invoice of the exported goods. This
invoice contains information regarding the quantity of the goods exported and
the amount to be paid by the importer for the delivery.

17.SECURING
PAYMENT

After the
goods are shipped, the importer is informed about it by the exporter. The
importer then needs to get the goods customs cleared in order to claim them for
which he needs various documents. These documents are sent to the importer by
the exporter’s banker only when the importer accepts the ‘bill of exchange’
which secures the payment of the goods.