Some developments in recent years relating to Poverty Estimates are as follows:

 

  • Task Force set up by Niti Ayog
    • The task force suggested four options for tracking the poor.
      • Continue with the Tendulkar poverty line
      • Switch to the Rangarajan or other higher rural and urban poverty lines;
      • Track progress of the bottom 30% of the population;
      • Track progress along specific components of material poverty such as nutrition, housing, drinking water, sanitation, electricity and connectivity.
  • Updation of SECC Data
    • Issue arises whether Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC) offer an alternative to Poverty line.
    • SECC allows schemes to be targeted for each of the inclusion criteria or deprivation indicator.
      • To an extent, SECC data is more robust and in tune with ground reality than the traditional poverty line, which is based on consumption expenditure of households – Poverty line basket(PLB)
    • The SECC data is also extremely granular, with locality and house number as well as details of family members, occupation, level of education, kind of house, ownership of selected gadgets, among other things. The SECC is therefore useful for identifying potential beneficiaries of social programs such as affordable housing, electricity, water and toilets but not for tracking overall poverty over time
  • Multidimensional Poverty Index by Niti Ayog
    • NITI Aayog has constituted a Multidimensional Poverty Index Coordination Committee (MPICC) with members from relevant Line Ministries and Departments
    • The exercise is aimed at compelling states to take aggressive poverty reductions measures by competing with each other.
    • The results are also expected to feed into the UNDP’s Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI).