Extreme poverty in India down to 5.3% in 2022-23

• Threshold hiked to $3/day, yet poverty incidence sees a sharp fall

- FE BUREAU

INDIA'S EXTREME POVERTY fell to 5.3% in 2022-23 from 27.1% in 2011-12, a much sharper decline than in previous decades, the World Bank said, releasing updated data. Only 75.24 million were suffering extreme poverty in the country in 2022-23, as against 344.47 million in 2011-12, it said, implying a massive 269 million came out of poverty during the period.

The sharp reduction in estimated poverty was despite the World Bank raising its poverty threshold to $3 (daily consumption) from $2.15 earlier, and adopting 2021 Purchasing Power Parities (PPPs).

As per the earlier $2.15 poverty rate (based on 2017 prices), only 2.3% of Indian population were living in extreme poverty in 2022-23, down from 16.2% in 2011-12. In terms of the absolute number of poverty-stricken people, this meant a reduction to 33.66 million in 2022-23, from 205.93 million in 2011-12. In other words 172 million people were lifted above that poverty line during the period.