Trisonics
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Here are some FAQs
Revised Poverty Estimates: What does this mean for India?
Is India getting poorer?
No, not all. India has made steady progress against poverty. A look at the 25-year period between 1981 and 2005 shows that India has moved from having 60 percent of its people living on less than $ 1.25 a day to 42 percent. The number of people living below a dollar a day (2005 prices) has also come down from 42 percent to 24 percent over the same period. Both measures show that India has maintained even progress against poverty since the 1980s, with the poverty rate declining at a little under one percentage point per year.
But, although India has had significant success in reducing the number of the poorest of its poor - those living on less than a dollar a day – there are still a huge number of people living just above this line of deprivation. This is most evident when we study absolute numbers. The number of people living below a dollar a day is down from 296 million in 1981 to 267 million people in 2005. However, the number of poor below $1.25 a day has increased from 421 million in 1981 to 456 million in 2005. This the biggest challenge facing India today.
How do you explain the huge difference between your figures and the Government of India’s own poverty estimates?
The difference stems from the use of different poverty lines. To assess global poverty on comparable terms, we use an average of the national poverty lines of the world’s 15 poorest countries to determine the international poverty line at $ 1.25 per day at 2005 PPP prices. India, on the other hand, measures its poverty according to its own national poverty line which, in 2005 PPP, translates to $ 1.02 per day. As the two poverty lines are pegged at different levels, the number of people living below them is also different.
Is the World Bank suggesting that India’s poverty line is too low and it should revise it?
No, the new Bank paper does not suggest that India, or for that matter any other country using national poverty lines, should now peg their poverty line at $1.25. Each country does and will continue to determine its own national poverty line. As stated earlier, the Bank’s sole aim is to look at poverty across the globe on a comparable basis.
Do the new estimates show that India’s recent growth has not been able to make a dent in the fight against poverty?
The fact that poverty reduction in India has not been commensurate with its spectacular growth of recent years is not news. The government recognizes that its main development challenge rests on reducing inequalities and making sure that all its people, living in all its regions, are able to share the fruits of that growth equally. The Eleventh Plan seeks to address this issue of inclusive growth frontally.
However, this is not to say that India’s phenomenal growth has not helped lift people out of poverty. In order to improve the lives of a greater number of its poor, India will also have to reduce those basic inequalities – lack of access to education, healthcare and opportunities - that prevent poor people from participating in the growth process.
How does India compare with the rest of the world when it comes to fighting poverty?
India’s poverty declined by 19% between 1990 and 2005 as against 38% globally. However, when China is excluded from the count, the global decline falls to 18%, largely because China has achieved a much faster rate of poverty reduction.
How do the new numbers compare with the Bank’s earlier estimation of poverty in India?
The World Bank has been using the “ a dollar a day” yardstick since it produced the first set of global poverty estimates in the 1990 World Development Report: Poverty. This current revision raising the international poverty benchmark to $ 1.25 a day was carried out in light of improved data on the cost of living in developing countries, which was found to be higher than earlier estimated. Previous estimates based on the 1993 PPPs and the $1.08 a day poverty line at 1993 prices yield a poverty rate of 34 percent for India in 2005, as compared to 42 percent for the $1.25 line using the 2005 PPPs.
What’s the difference between national poverty lines and the international poverty line?
Countries use national poverty lines and household surveys specific to their country to measure poverty. If, however, the objective is to measure the extent of global poverty, a common yardstick adjusted for differences in cost-of-living across countries is required.
The international poverty line is thus a benchmark derived from the poverty lines of the world’s 15 poorest countries to allow for international comparisons.
Each country however, uses its own poverty line for its own internal poverty assessment, which may be above or below this international line. India’s poverty line, for instance stands at $ 1.02 cents per day.
http://www.worldbank.org.in/WBSITE/...K:141137~piPK:141127~theSitePK:295584,00.html
Revised Poverty Estimates: What does this mean for India?
Is India getting poorer?
No, not all. India has made steady progress against poverty. A look at the 25-year period between 1981 and 2005 shows that India has moved from having 60 percent of its people living on less than $ 1.25 a day to 42 percent. The number of people living below a dollar a day (2005 prices) has also come down from 42 percent to 24 percent over the same period. Both measures show that India has maintained even progress against poverty since the 1980s, with the poverty rate declining at a little under one percentage point per year.
But, although India has had significant success in reducing the number of the poorest of its poor - those living on less than a dollar a day – there are still a huge number of people living just above this line of deprivation. This is most evident when we study absolute numbers. The number of people living below a dollar a day is down from 296 million in 1981 to 267 million people in 2005. However, the number of poor below $1.25 a day has increased from 421 million in 1981 to 456 million in 2005. This the biggest challenge facing India today.
How do you explain the huge difference between your figures and the Government of India’s own poverty estimates?
The difference stems from the use of different poverty lines. To assess global poverty on comparable terms, we use an average of the national poverty lines of the world’s 15 poorest countries to determine the international poverty line at $ 1.25 per day at 2005 PPP prices. India, on the other hand, measures its poverty according to its own national poverty line which, in 2005 PPP, translates to $ 1.02 per day. As the two poverty lines are pegged at different levels, the number of people living below them is also different.
Is the World Bank suggesting that India’s poverty line is too low and it should revise it?
No, the new Bank paper does not suggest that India, or for that matter any other country using national poverty lines, should now peg their poverty line at $1.25. Each country does and will continue to determine its own national poverty line. As stated earlier, the Bank’s sole aim is to look at poverty across the globe on a comparable basis.
Do the new estimates show that India’s recent growth has not been able to make a dent in the fight against poverty?
The fact that poverty reduction in India has not been commensurate with its spectacular growth of recent years is not news. The government recognizes that its main development challenge rests on reducing inequalities and making sure that all its people, living in all its regions, are able to share the fruits of that growth equally. The Eleventh Plan seeks to address this issue of inclusive growth frontally.
However, this is not to say that India’s phenomenal growth has not helped lift people out of poverty. In order to improve the lives of a greater number of its poor, India will also have to reduce those basic inequalities – lack of access to education, healthcare and opportunities - that prevent poor people from participating in the growth process.
How does India compare with the rest of the world when it comes to fighting poverty?
India’s poverty declined by 19% between 1990 and 2005 as against 38% globally. However, when China is excluded from the count, the global decline falls to 18%, largely because China has achieved a much faster rate of poverty reduction.
How do the new numbers compare with the Bank’s earlier estimation of poverty in India?
The World Bank has been using the “ a dollar a day” yardstick since it produced the first set of global poverty estimates in the 1990 World Development Report: Poverty. This current revision raising the international poverty benchmark to $ 1.25 a day was carried out in light of improved data on the cost of living in developing countries, which was found to be higher than earlier estimated. Previous estimates based on the 1993 PPPs and the $1.08 a day poverty line at 1993 prices yield a poverty rate of 34 percent for India in 2005, as compared to 42 percent for the $1.25 line using the 2005 PPPs.
What’s the difference between national poverty lines and the international poverty line?
Countries use national poverty lines and household surveys specific to their country to measure poverty. If, however, the objective is to measure the extent of global poverty, a common yardstick adjusted for differences in cost-of-living across countries is required.
The international poverty line is thus a benchmark derived from the poverty lines of the world’s 15 poorest countries to allow for international comparisons.
Each country however, uses its own poverty line for its own internal poverty assessment, which may be above or below this international line. India’s poverty line, for instance stands at $ 1.02 cents per day.
http://www.worldbank.org.in/WBSITE/...K:141137~piPK:141127~theSitePK:295584,00.html
You can consider our citizens effectively fed. However if we fail to do so, it is none of your business.
