New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh recorded the largest decline in the number of Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) poor between 2013-14 and 2022-23, as India saw 24.82 crore people escape multidimensional poverty in the last nine years.
According to the findings of NITI Aayog’s discussion paper ‘Multidimensional Poverty in India since 2005-06’, India registered a significant decline in multidimensional poverty from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23 which was a reduction of 17.89 percentage points. Uttar Pradesh registered the largest decline in the number of poor with 5.94 crore people escaping multidimensional poverty during the last nine years followed by Bihar at 3.77 crore, Madhya Pradesh at 2.30 crore and Rajasthan at 1.87 crore.
The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) is a globally recognized comprehensive measure that captures poverty in multiple dimensions beyond monetary aspects. MPI’s global methodology is based on the robust Alkire and Foster (AF) method that identifies people as poor based on a universally acknowledged metric designed to assess acute poverty, providing a complementary perspective to conventional monetary poverty measures.
The paper also showed that the pace of decline in poverty headcount ratio using the exponential method was much faster between 2015-16 to 2019-21 (10.66% annual rate of decline) compared to the period 2005-06 to 2015-16 (7.69% annual rate of decline). All 12 indicators of MPI recorded significant improvement during the entire study period. To assess the poverty levels in the year 2013-14 against the current scenario (i.e. for the year 2022-23), projected estimates were used due to data limitations for these specific periods.
The discussion paper gave credit for this achievement to significant initiatives of the government to address all dimensions of poverty between 2013-14 to 2022-23. As a result, India is likely to achieve its SDG target of halving multidimensional poverty well before 2030, it said. Initiatives like Poshan Abhiyan and Anaemia Mukt Bharat as well as the ‘Targeted Public Distribution System’ under the National Food Security Act which covered 81.35 crore beneficiaries, providing food grains to rural and urban populations, significantly enhanced access to healthcare facilities, leading to a substantial decrease in deprivation.
It further noted that recent decisions, such as extending free food grain distribution under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana for another five years, exemplified the Government’s commitment. Various programmes addressing maternal health, clean cooking fuel distribution through Ujjwala Yojana, improved electricity coverage via Saubhagya, and transformative campaigns like Swachh Bharat Mission and Jal Jeevan Mission collectively elevated living conditions and overall well-being of people. Additionally, flagship programmes like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and PM Awas Yojana played pivotal roles in financial inclusion and providing safe housing for the underprivileged, the paper said.
The discussion paper was released today by Professor Ramesh Chand, Member, NITI Aayog in the presence of B. V. R. Subrahmanyam, CEO of NITI Aayog. Oxford Policy and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have provided technical inputs for this paper.
– global bihari bureau
