International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Online ISSN: 2349-4182, Print ISSN: 2349-5979, Impact Factor: RJIF 5.72
www.allsubjectjournal.com
Volume 4; Issue 6; June 2017; Page No. 382-387

Status of poverty in India: A state-wise analysis

1
Akshu, 2 Dr. Lalit Sharma, 3 Megha Vashishth
1
Research Scholar, Department of Economics, M.D. University Rohtak, Haryana, India
2
Assistant Professor G.B.P.G. College, Rohtak, Haryana, India
3
Student, G.B. College of Education, Rohtak, Haryana, India

Abstract
Poverty is a global issue. In simple words, poverty is the lack of basic amenities. This concept has been evading probe for few
decades. Question like how to define and measure poverty have been raised by different scholars from their own point of view, still
leaving many chances of improvement. Till recently, poverty was assessed on the basis of income level. Many social scientists
have defined poverty as a multidimensional concept rather than uni-dimensional. Poverty includes various dimensions of
deprivation. The main emphasis of this study is to understand the concept and measurement of poverty as well as to focus and
explore the state- level poverty in India. The state-wise poverty has been explained with regard to rural areas as well as urban areas
during 1972-73 to 2011-12. The study used the poverty data from Planning Commission’s different reports, Government of India.
The study explored that in the 2011-12 rural poverty was the highest in Chhattisgarh followed by Arunachal Pradesh Manipur,
Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Bihar, while it was the lowest in Goa followed by Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala. In Urban
area, poverty was the highest Manipur, followed by Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Odessa, Nagaland
and Karnataka stand above national level. In terms of combined rural and urban poverty, it was the highest in Chhattisgarh
followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh and it was the
lowest in Goa followed by Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Punjab and Sikkim.

Keywords: poverty, deprivation, quality of life

Introduction Professor D.T. Lakdawala to look into the methodology for

Poverty has been a serious issue in the development process estimation of poverty and to re-define poverty line, if
across the world for quite a long period of time and alleviation necessary, re-iterated that the poverty line approach anchored
of poverty has been one of the major challenges faced by India in a calorie norm and associated with a fixed consumption
too (Sharma and Chakravarty, 2015) [14]. To curb and reduce basket (as recommended by the 1979 Task Force) be
the curse of poverty, different countries have preferred to continued (Expert Group Repot, Planning Commission, 1993).
adopt different sets of measures like universal targeting, direct Further, an Expert Group (2004) of the Planning Commission
intervention for improving the condition of the poor and under the Chairmanship of Professor S. Tendulker defined the
alleviating their poverty (Nayyar and Rohini 2016) [12]. For poverty line criteria for rural as well as for urban people for
targeting, the first most important, yet the most difficult task, 2004-05 in terms of monthly per capita consumption
is to define poverty and still harder is to measure it. Faced expenditure of Rs. 446.68 as poverty line. Those having
with the poverty syndrome and to identify the poor and what monthly per capita consumption expenditure below this line
constitutes poverty in an operational way, the Planning were deemed to be poor, otherwise not poor for rural areas;
Commission of India and similar other agencies have been and for urban areas those who had monthly per capita
trying to address it from time to time much though in different expenditure below Rs. 578.8 were considered as poor (Expert
ways, with shifting priorities quite often. Group Report, Planning Commission, 2010).
In 1962, an expert working group set up by the Planning Further, an Expert Group (2014) of the Planning Commission
Commission defined poverty criteria in term of monthly per under the Chairmanship of Professor C. Rangarajan has
capita consumption expenditure of Rs. 20 and Rs. 25 for rural defined the poverty line criteria for rural as well as for urban
and urban areas respectively. In 1979, a Task Force under the people for 2011 in terms of monthly per capita consumption
Planning Commission defined poverty line as per capita expenditure of Rs. 972 as poverty line in rural area. Those
expenditure level at which the average per capita per day having monthly per capita consumption expenditure below
calorie intake was 2400 calories in rural areas and 2100 this line were deemed to be poor, otherwise not poor for rural
calories in urban areas. It was estimated that, on an average, areas; and for urban areas those who had monthly per capita
consumer expenditure of Rs. 49.09 per capita per month was expenditure below Rs. 1407 were considered as poor (Expert
associated with a calorie intake of 2400 per capita per day in Group Report, Planning Commission, 2014). The main
rural areas and Rs. 56.64 per capita per month with a calorie focuses of this study is to explore the state- level poverty in
intake of 2100 per day in urban areas (Task Force Expert India. The state-wise poverty has been explained with
Report, Planning Commission, 1979). reference to rural areas as well as urban areas during 1972-73
An Expert Group Report (1993) on 'Estimation of Proportion to 2011-12. The study has used the poverty data from Planning
and Number of Poor’ constituted under the Chairmanship of Commission’s different reports, Government of India.
382
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Results and Conclusion of the impetus for academic as well as policy related studies
In India, the official approach to define and measure poverty on issues concerned with definition, measurement,
for purposes of policy formulation and evaluation in the interpretation, policy choice and evaluation. The official
context of a strategy for poverty reduction has provided much approach has laid emphasis on ensuring a subsistence.

Table 1: State-Wise Proportion of Population below Poverty Line in India

1972-73 1977-78 1983-84
State
Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total
Andhra Pradesh 48.4 52.5 49.2 38.1 46.4 39.9 26.5 40.1 29.8
Arunachal Pradesh 52.6 37.1 51.9 59.8 37.5 58.5 42.6 26.3 41.4
Assam 52.6 37.1 51.2 59.8 37.5 57.6 42.6 26.3 40.8
Bihar 62.9 51.7 61.7 63.2 52.1 61.9 64.3 50.4 62.5
Chhattisgarh - - - - - - - - -
Delhi 24.4 49.1 46.8 30.1 33.3 33.0 7.6 28.3 26.9
Goa 46.8 36.8 44.0 37.6 36.6 37.3 14.8 27.2 19.0
Gujarat 46.3 49.3 47.2 41.7 43.1 42.1 29.8 40.6 33.2
Haryana 34.2 39.5 35.2 27.7 36.2 29.4 20.5 23.4 21.2
Himachal Pradesh 27.4 13.2 26.4 33.4 19.4 32.4 17.0 9.2 16.3
Jammu and Kashmir 45.5 30.4 42.5 42.8 31.8 40.6 26.0 17.1 24.1
Jharkhand - - - - - - - - -
Karnataka 55.1 52.0 54.3 48.1 52.8 49.4 36.3 43.3 38.4
Kerala 59.1 62.2 59.7 51.4 59.5 52.9 39.0 48.6 40.9
Madhya Pradesh 62.6 58.3 61.9 62.5 62.0 62.4 48.9 54.5 50.1
Maharashtra 57.7 42.9 52.9 63.9 40.6 56.0 45.2 40.5 43.5
Manipur 52.6 37.1 50.0 59.8 37.5 54.8 42.6 26.3 38.0
Meghalaya 52.6 37.1 50.2 59.8 37.5 56.0 42.6 26.3 39.4
Mizoram 52.6 37.1 50.3 59.8 37.5 55.3 42.6 26.3 38.1
Nagaland 52.6 37.1 50.8 59.8 37.5 56.7 42.6 26.3 39.7
Orissa 67.2 56.2 66.2 72.3 53.5 70.3 67.5 50.6 65.3
Punjab 28.2 27.6 28.0 16.3 27.6 19.3 13.2 23.8 16.2
Rajasthan 44.7 53.1 46.3 35.8 46.3 37.9 33.5 40.3 35.0
Sikkim 52.6 37.1 50.9 59.8 37.5 56.6 42.6 26.3 39.6
Tamil Nadu 57.4 54.4 56.5 57.6 53.2 56.2 53.9 49.2 52.3
Tripura 52.6 37.1 51.0 59.8 37.5 57.4 42.6 26.3 40.7
Uttar Pradesh 56.5 59.4 56.9 47.6 57.0 49.1 46.4 50.2 47.1
Uttaranchal
West Bengal 73.1 34.5 63.1 68.3 38.7 60.6 63.0 32.2 54.7
India 56.4 49.2 54.9 53.0 47.4 51.8 45.6 42.1 44.7

1987-88 1993-94 2004-05 2011-12

State
Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total
Andhra Pradesh 20.9 44.6 27.2 48.1 35.2 44.6 32.3 23.4 29.9 10.9 5.8 9.2
Arunachal Pradesh 39.3 17.3 37.4 60.0 22.6 54.5 33.6 23.5 31.1 38.9 20.3 34.6
Assam 39.3 17.3 36.8 54.9 27.7 51.8 36.4 21.8 34.4 33.8 20.4 31.9
Bihar 52.6 57.7 53.3 62.3 44.7 60.5 55.7 43.7 54.4 34.0 31.2 33.7
Chhattisgarh 55.9 28.1 50.9 55.1 28.4 49.4 44.6 24.7 39.9
Delhi 1.29 16.9 16.0 16.2 15.7 15.7 15.6 12.9 13.1 12.9 9.8 9.9
Goa 17.6 33.7 23.4 25.5 14.6 20.8 28.1 22.2 25.0 6.8 4.0 5.0
Gujarat 28.6 39.6 32.3 43.1 28.0 37.8 39.1 20.1 31.8 21.5 10.1 16.6
Haryana 16.2 17.7 16.6 40.0 24.2 35.9 24.8 22.4 24.1 11.6 10.2 11.1
Himachal Pradesh 16.2 6.18 15.4 36.7 13.6 34.6 25.0 4.6 22.9 8.4 4.3 8.0
Jammu and Kashmir 25.7 14.8 23.2 32.5 6.9 26.3 14.1 10.4 13.2 11.5 7.2 10.3
Jharkhand - - - 65.9 41.8 60.7 51.6 23.8 45.3 40.8 24.8 36.9
Karnataka 32.8 49.0 38.1 56.6 34.2 49.5 37.5 25.9 33.4 24.5 15.2 20.9
Kerala 29.1 43.3 32.0 33.9 23.9 31.3 20.2 18.4 19.7 9.1 4.9 7.0
Madhya Pradesh 41.9 48.1 43.4 49.0 31.8 44.6 53.6 35.1 48.6 35.7 21.0 31.6
Maharashtra 40.7 38.9 40.1 59.3 30.3 47.8 47.9 25.6 38.1 24.2 9.1 17.3
Manipur 39.3 17.3 32.9 64.4 67.2 65.1 39.3 34.5 38.0 38.8 32.5 36.8
Meghalaya 39.3 17.3 34.6 38.0 23.0 35.2 14.0 24.7 16.1 12.5 9.2 11.8
Mizoram 39.3 17.3 32.5 16.6 6.3 11.8 23.0 7.9 15.3 35.4 6.3 20.4
Nagaland 39.3 17.3 34.8 20.1 21.8 20.4 10.0 4.3 9.0 19.9 16.4 18.8
Orissa 57.6 44.1 55.6 63.0 34.5 59.1 60.8 37.6 57.2 35.6 17.2 32.5
Punjab 12.6 12.9 12.7 20.3 27.2 22.4 22.1 18.7 20.9 7.6 9.2 8.2
Rajasthan 33.2 38.9 34.6 40.8 29.9 38.3 35.8 29.7 34.4 16.0 10.6 14.7

383
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Sikkim 39.3 17.3 34.6 33.0 20.4 31.8 31.8 25.9 31.1 9.8 3.6 8.1
Tamil Nadu 45.8 43.8 45.1 51.0 33.7 44.6 37.5 19.7 28.9 15.8 6.5 11.2
Tripura 39.3 17.3 36.8 34.3 25.4 32.9 44.5 22.5 40.6 16.5 7.4 14.0
Uttar Pradesh 41.1 45.2 41.9 50.9 38.3 48.4 42.7 34.1 40.9 30.4 26.0 29.4
Uttaranchal - - - 36.7 18.7 32.0 35.1 26.2 32.7 11.6 10.4 11.2
West Bengal 48.3 32.8 43.9 42.5 31.2 39.4 38.2 24.4 34.3 22.5 14.6 19.9
India 39.0 40.1 39.3 50.1 31.8 45.3 41.8 25.7 37.2 25.7 13.7 21.9
Source: Planning commission, Government of India.

384
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Table 1 reveals state-wise percentage of population below percent), Tripura (52.67 percent) and Uttar Pradesh (56.53
poverty line in India from the year 1973 to 2011. In 1973-74, percent). On the other hand, poverty was found to be was the
about 56.44 percent of the rural population was living below lowest in Himachal Pradesh (27.42 percent) followed by
poverty line, with poverty ratio the highest in West Bengal Punjab and Haryana (28.21 percent and 34.24 percent
(73.16 percent) followed by Arunachal Pradesh (52.67 respectively).
percent), Assam (52.67 percent), Bihar (62.99 percent), In case of urban area, about 49.23 percent of Indian
Karnataka (55.14 percent), Kerala (59.19 percent), Madhya population was living below poverty line in 1973-74 and more
Pradesh (62.66 percent), Maharashtra (57.71 percent), than 50 percent of the population was living below poverty
Manipur (52.67 percent), Meghalaya (52.67 percent), line in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala,
Mizoram (52.67 percent), Nagaland (52.67 percent), Orissa Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar
(67.28 percent), Sikkim (52.67 percent), Tamil Nadu (57.43 Pradesh (that is with percentage points of 52.56, 51.75, 49.31,
385
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

52.01, 62.24, 58.34, 56.29, 53.15, 54.47, 59.48 respectively). percent), Bihar (60.5 percent), Orissa (59.01 percent),
More than 50 per cent of population was living below poverty Arunachal Pradesh (54.5 percent) and Assam (51.8 percent).
line in Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, In 2004-05, rural poverty was the highest in Orissa (60.8
Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh both in urban and rural areas. percent) followed by Bihar (551.7 percent), Chhattisgarh (55.1
Thus, while the highest poverty existed in Orissa at 66.24 percent), Madhya Pradesh (53.6 percent), and Jharkhand (51.6
percent as against the national average level at 54.93 percent, percent) and it was the lowest in Nagaland (10 percent)
the lowest poverty was in Himachal Pradesh (26.40 percent) followed by Meghalaya, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana
followed by Punjab (28.08 percent). and Himachal Pradesh (14.0, 14.1, 22.1, 24.8 and 25.0 percent
In 1977-78, rural poverty was relatively the highest in Orissa, respectively). Urban poverty was the highest in Bihar (43.7
West Bengal, Maharashtra, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh (at percent) followed by Orissa (37.6 percent), Madhya Pradesh
72.38, 68.34, 63.97, 63.25 and 62.52 percent respectively). In (35.1 percent), Manipur (34.5 percent) and Uttar Pradesh (34.1
case of urban area, poverty was the highest in Madhya percent) and the lowest in Nagaland (4.3 percent), Himachal
Pradesh, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, Karnataka, and Pradesh (4.6 percent), Mizoram (4.9 percent, Jammu &
Tamil Nadu, while the combined rural and urban poverty was Kashmir (10.4 percent), Kerala (18.4 percent), and Punjab
70.35 percent in Orissa, 62.43 percent in Madhya Pradesh, 18.7 percent). In case of combined rural and urban poverty,
61.95 percent in Bihar, and 60.65 percent in West Bengal. Orissa, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh
In 1983-84, about 45.61 percent of rural population was living and Tripura stand above the national poverty level.
below poverty line in India, with the highest in Orissa (67.53 In 2011-12 rural poverty was the highest in Chhattisgarh
percent) followed by Bihar (64.37 percent) and West Bengal (44.61 percent) followed by Arunachal Pradesh (38.93
(63.05) percent). It was the lowest in Punjab (13.20 percent) percent), Manipur (38.50 percent), Madhya Pradesh (35.74
followed by Goa (14.8 percent) and Himachal Pradesh (17.0 percent), Orissa (35.69 percent) and Bihar (34.06 percent),
percent). Urban poverty was the highest in Madhya Pradesh while it was the lowest in Goa (16.81 percent) followed by
(54.59 percent) followed by Orissa, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh (with Punjab (7.66 percent), Himachal Pradesh (8.48 percent) and
50.61, 50.42 and 50.27 percent respectively), while it was the Kerala (9.14 percent). In Urban area, poverty was the highest
lowest in Himachal Pradesh (9.25 percent) followed by Manipur (32.59 percent), followed by Bihar (31.23 percent),
Jammu & Kashmir (17.14 percent). In terms of rural and Jharkhand (24.83 percent), Chhattisgarh (24.75 percent),
urban combined, poverty was highest in Orissa (65.32 percent) Assam (20.49 percent), Arunachal Pradesh (20.33 percent),
followed by Bihar, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Odessa (17.29 percent), Nagaland (16.48 percent) and
Pradesh (with 62.51, 54.72, 52.38 and 50.13 percent Karnataka (15.25 percent) stand above national level (13.70
respectively). On the other hand, the combined poverty was percent). In terms of combined rural and urban poverty, it was
lowest in Punjab (16.29 percent) followed by Himachal the highest in Chhattisgarh (39.93 percent) followed by
Pradesh, and Goa (16.39 and 19.05 percent respectively). Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya
In 1987-88, the rural poverty was the highest in Orissa, and Pradesh, Manipur, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh and it was the
Bihar (at 57.64 percent and 52.63 percent respectively) lowest in Goa (5.09 percent) followed by Andhra Pradesh,
followed by West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Punjab and Sikkim.
Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra (with 48.30, 45.80, 41.92,
41.10 and 40.78 percent respectively). On the other hand, rural References
poverty was the lowest in Punjab (12.60 percent) followed by 1. Alagh YK. Estimation of Poverty and Identifying the
Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Goa (at 16.22, 16.28 and Poor. Indian Journal of Human Development. 2010; 4:1.
17.64 percent respectively). In case of urban area, poverty was 2. Alkire Sabina, Suman Seth. Measuring Multidimensional
the highest in Bihar (57.71 percent), while it was the lowest in Poverty in India: A New Proposal, OPHI Working Paper
Himachal Pradesh (6.18 percent). In case of combined rural No 15, September, Oxford Poverty & Human
and Urban poverty, the states of Orissa, Bihar West Bengal, Development Initiative (OPHI), Oxford Department of
Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra (with 55.61, International Development, University of Oxford, 2009.
53.37, 43.99, 43.40, 41.99 and 40.10 percent respectively), 3. Government of India. Perspectives of Development India
stand above the national poverty level (of 39.34 percent), 1960-61 to 1975-76: Implications of Planning for a
whereas Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa, minimum level of living, Planning Commission New
Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi, 1962.
Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, 4. Government of India. Report of the Task Force on
Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, and Tripura stood below the Projections of Minimum Needs and Effective
national poverty level. Consumption Demand, Planning Commission New Delhi,
In 1993-94, rural poverty was the highest in Manipur, Orissa, 1979.
Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh (at 64.4, 63.0, 62.3 and 60 5. Government of India. Report of the Expert Group on
percent respectively), and the lowest in Mizoram, Nagaland, programme for alleviation of Poverty, Planning
Punjab and Goa (at 16.6, 20.1, 20.3 and 25.5 percent Commission, New Delhi, 1982.
respectively). In case of urban area poverty, it was the highest 6. Government of India. The concept and estimation of
in Manipur (67.2 percent) followed by Bihar (44.7 percent) Poverty Line, Planning Commission, New Delhi, 1984.
and Uttar Pradesh (38.3 percent) and lowest in Mizoram (6.3 7. Government of India. Report of the Expert Group on
percent) followed by Jammu Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Estimation of Proportion and number of Poor, Perspective
Goa (at 6.9, 13.6, and 14.6 percent respectively). In terms of Planning Division. New Delhi, 1993.
combined rural and urban poverty, more than 50 percent of 8. Government of India. Press release on Estimate of
population was living below poverty line in Manipur (65.1 Poverty, Perspective Planning Division. New Delhi, 1997.
386
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

9. Government of India. Press release on Estimate of

Poverty, Perspective Planning Division. New Delhi, 2011.
10. Government of India. Report of the Expert Group to
Review the Methodology for Measurement of Poverty,
Planning Commission New Delhi, 2014.
11. Government of India. A Technical Note on the Sixth Plan
of India (1980-1985), Planning Commission New Delhi,
1981.
12. Nayyar Gaurav, Nayyar Rohini. India’s Poverty of
Numbers Revisiting Measurement Issues. Economic &
Political Weekly, 2016; LI:35.
13. Patnaik Utsa. Poverty Trends in India 2004–05 to 2009–
10: Updating Poverty Estimates and Comparing Official
Figures. Economic & Political Weekly, 2013; 48:40.
14. Sharma Lalit, Chakravarty Kavita. Multidimensional
Poverty in Haryana. Indian Journal of Human
Development. 2015; 9:1.

387