National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI)
Recently, on the occasion of Independence Day, the Prime Minister said in his address that 135 million people in India have come above the poverty line.
He has given this figure on the basis of the findings of the ‘National Multidimensional Poverty Index’ (NMPI).
According to NMPI, the poverty level in India has dropped from 25 per cent to less than 15 per cent in the period from 2015-16 to 2019-21.
It may be noted that the National Multidimensional Poverty Index is issued by NITI Aayog. This index measures deprivation based on the following three dimensions – health and nutrition, education and standard of living – and 12 parameters.
Estimates of poverty in India:
- The official measurement of poverty line in India is done on the basis of consumption expenditure (in rupees).
- The poverty line in India has been determined by different committees headed by DT Lakdawala (1993), Suresh Tendulkar (2009) and C Rangarajan (2014).
- According to the Rangarajan Committee, a person spending Rs 32 per day in rural India and Rs 47 in urban India should be considered in the poverty line.
- The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) conducts the Consumption Expenditure Survey (CES). It is organized once every five years.
Related Issues: The last official poverty figures in India were released in 2011. The CES data for 2017-18 was excluded from the records due to ambiguity in the data.
Source – Indian Express
