Question : POVERTY IN URBAN AREAS

(a) the details of the guidelines for identifying the poor/people living below the poverty line in the metropolitan cities and urban areas of the country alongwith the number of such families living in such areas, State-wise;

(b) whether the Government has taken any steps to control the increasing number of poor in the country;

(c) if not, the reasons for increase in the number of poor according to multiple poverty index of the Human Development Report, 2011; and

(d) the details of the various schemes for the benefit of such families and the projects launched thereunder alongwith the allocation made in this regard during each of the last three years and the current year, State-wise?

THE MINISTER OF HOUSING & URBAN POVERTY ALLEVIATION (KUMARI SELJA)

(a): For identification of people below poverty line, the Government of India has launched the combined Rural-Urban Socio-economic and cast census in June, 2011.

The questionnaire devised for the conduct of Urban Socio-economic and Caste Census includes canvassing of information on three indicators of vulnerability- Residential, Occupational and Social from the urban respondents. The States/ Union Territory Governments have already initiated the SECC with financial and technical support of Government of India.

(b) to (d): The Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation is implementing scheme of Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) aimed at providing gainful employment to the urban unemployed and under-employed poor, through encouraging the setting up of self employment ventures by the urban poor living below the poverty line, skills training and also through providing wage employment by utilizing their labour for construction of socially and economically useful public assets. Also, Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (Basic Services to the Urban Poor and Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme components), aimed at providing basic amenities and affordable housing to the urban poor, especially slum dwellers is being implemented since December, 2005.

The Government has launched a new scheme called Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) on 02.06.2011 for the slum dwellers and the urban poor. This scheme aims at providing support to States that are willing to provide property rights to slum dwellers.

State-wise allocations made during the last three years and the current year in respect of SJSRY and JNNURM are at Annexure-I & II respectively.