ABSTRACT
In an economically underdeveloped country there is always the temptation to target policies specifically towards the poor. This approach appears unimpeachable for who can doubt that it is important to save millions from poverty and quickly. Unfortunately, such an approach does not really solve the problem though it keeps the poor alive, perhaps in a better condition, but still in a clearly depressed condition. Instead, it is much better to plan state level interventions that take the whole society into consideration and not just the poor. This ensures greater durability to these programmes, as well as makes them less prone to corruption. As the policies now have a universal import across classes they are more sensitive to matters of citizenship. Doubtless, it is easier to think of targeted populations but, experience has shown that, there is much less accountability in them even though they please populist sentiments.
