(a) Whether it is a fact that there has been a fall in poverty line in the last
few years;
(b) if so, the percentage of people living below poverty line as on date
and how does that compare with each of the last ten year`s, year-
wise; and;
(c) the basis on which the Government come to a conclusion in the fall
of the poverty line?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PLANNING,
PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION, ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS,
PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND DISINVESTMENT (SHRI ARUN SHOURIE)
(a) to (c) : The Planning Commission estimates percentage of persons
living below the poverty line at national and state level from the large
sample surveys on consumer expenditure conducted by the National
Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) at an interval of approximately five
years. The latest estimates of poverty are available for the year 1993-94
based on the National Sample Survey data on consumer expenditure of the
50th Round. The full data from next large survey on consumer expenditure
conducted during the period July, 1999 to June, 2000 are under process.
As such, the estimates of percentage of people living below the poverty line
as on date and also during each of the last ten years are not available. The
comparable estimates of poverty on the basis of large sample survey on
consumer expenditure since 1977-78 show a regular decline in the
estimates of percentage of persons living below the poverty line at national
level as can be seen from the Table below.
Percentage of People below the Poverty Line
1977-78 51.32% 1983 44.48% 1987-88 38.86% 1993-94 35.97%