India super poor, not superpower, says Shashi Tharoor

[Omar1984]

22% for Pakistan is old data of 2005 and using this data for 2011 is stupidity because poverty already has increased too much in Pakistan. many in Pakistan government believe that poverty is miscalculated in Pakistan and it is about 32% and other say it is as high as 40-50%.

---------- Post added at 12:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:11 PM ----------



22.5% poverty for Pakistan is itself a joke.

Its not a 2005 data. Its a 2011 UN data report and reported by Telegraph and then Economic Times (Indian newspaper) from this month (November 2011).

Why would Telegraph, UN , and Indian news sources favor Pakistan.

 

[indushek]

Indian Posters we agree on one thing that our country is poor and there is lot of work for us to do.

Please refrain from posting who India or Pakistan is more poor, people here with dubious agendas are posting for scoring more brownie points Its accepted by all and sundry, no need for more huff and puff. It will unncessarily flame the thread.

 

[Omar1984]

I read the whole article carefully but i didn't seen any line which say india have more percentage of poor than pakistan.
please tell me which paragraph

NEW DELHI: More than half of India's population at 612 million is "multidimensionally poor" - or deficit in health, education and living standards - making it the world's largest such number of poor, according to the UN Human Development report 2011.

A comparison with the neighbour Pakistan shows 49 percent of its population is multidimensionally poor.

India has more 'multidimensionally poor' than Pakistan - Economic Times


What is more than half? More than 50%

Do you need to go back to class 3?

 

[harshad]

India has more 'multidimensionally poor' than Pakistan - Economic Times


What is more than half? More than 50%

Do you need to go back to class 3?

49% is not a high class number,atleast the multi dimensional povert is near to the real poverty unlike paksitan which has 22%(according to you) and still has 49% multi dimensional poverty so why so skewed data?

 

[Drone(PREDATOR)]

India has more 'multidimensionally poor' than Pakistan - Economic Times


What is more than half? More than 50%

Do you need to go back to class 3?

Hahahah.
Look what you written in last post

Its not a 2005 data. Its a 2011 data reported by Telegraph and then Economic Times (Indian newspaper) from this month (November 2011).
Why would Telegraph favor Pakistan. You Indians love to lie.

Kabhi kahta hai 22% and now 49 %

 

[Nitin Goyal]

India has more 'multidimensionally poor' than Pakistan - Economic Times


What is more than half? More than 50%

Do you need to go back to class 3?

Pakistan has 51% multidimensional poor people

 

[Omar1984]

Another November 2011 article from Hindustan Times (Indian News source).

Pak better than India on poverty

India has been ranked lower than its neighbour Pakistan in the United Nation’s multi-dimensional poverty index (MDI) and gender equality index even though it has been able to maintain its 134 rank in overall Human Development Index (HDI). The MDI evaluates deprivations in education, health and standard of living and the households with score of more than one-third of the weighted indicators are listed as multi-dimensionally poor.

The UN Development Programme’s HDI report says that 53.7% of Indians suffer from multi-dimensional poverty as compared to 49.4 % in Pakistan and 57.8% in Bangladesh.

Even in absolute poverty terms, measured for those earning less than $1.25 a day, Pakistan fares better than India. Around 41.6% of Indians in 2005 were earning less than $1.25 a day as compared to 22.6% Pakistanis.

When it comes to gender equality, India has been ranked lower than most of its neighbouring countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It is primarily on account of India’s adolescent fertility rate, lesser number of women in Parliament and poor participation of women in workforce.

Releasing the report --- Sustainability and Equity : Better Future for All --- Rural Development minister Jairam Ramesh said that not just inequality between nations but also inequalities within nations was very important.

He highlighted the finding of recent India Human Development Report, which said that Gujarat despite high economic growth had large deprived population of backwards and Kerala with low economic growth had lesser inequality.

“Economic development does not guarantee human development. A more disturbing fact is that actually economic development may lead to retrogation of social indices," he said.

India has been placed at ‘medium’ level of human development with ranking of 134 out of 187 countries on HDI even though its neighbours like Pakistan and Bangladesh have been ranked in 'low' category with positions of 145 and 146, respectively.

In the last report, India had been ranked at 119 out of 169 countries. But the new report for 2011 says it would be misleading to compare values and rankings with those of previously published reports, because the underlying data and methods have changed, as well as the number of countries included in the Human Development Index.

The report also showcases India’s human development with life expectancy increasing from 55.3 years in 1980 to 65.6 in 2011 and expected years of schooling increasing from 6.5 years to 10.3 years. India’s gross national income has also increased from $896 to $3,468 during the same period.

Pak better than India on poverty - Hindustan Times



Pakistanis are a bit more realistic than Indians. We never dream about superpower and we lost billions because of war on terror. Indians should be a little more realistic too. Superpower will never come to you. Accept this fact and move on.

 

[patna_ke_presley]

Its not a 2005 data. Its a 2011 data reported by Telegraph and then Economic Times (Indian newspaper) from this month (November 2011).

Why would Telegraph favor Pakistan. You Indians love to lie.

When your own news sources like The News is saying poverty in Pakistan has increased to 40%+ by 2009 due to economic chaos and inflation and your government is saying it is 32%+. Then i don't want to believe what a UK based newspaper is saying.

Poverty data: Chor machaye shor – The Express Tribune

Now the data can only be messed up by influencing those who collect and process it. This is exactly what happened. An official poverty line, broadly accepted after some initial debate, was applied for the first time to the dataset relating to 2000-01. Though it understated poverty in a period of drought, the resulting estimate of 32.1 percent was viewed bad optics by the finance minister of the military government. The result was withheld and his economic adviser, a contract employee always too eager to please the boss to keep the job, forced the staff of the federal bureau of statistics to retract, but without success.

Statistics reveal stunning increase in poverty

The World Bank’s Task Force on Food Security had put the ratio at 29.2 percent in 2004-05, 33.8 percent in 2007-08 and 36.1 percent in 2008-09. Such estimates placed 62 million people of the country Below the Poverty Line (BPL) in 2008-09.

The poverty increase situation thus stood as follows: 22.3 percent of the population in 2005-06 to between 30-35 percent in 2008-09; now this population is beyond 40 percent.

 

[Omar1984]

49% is not a high class number,atleast the multi dimensional povert is near to the real poverty unlike paksitan which has 22%(according to you) and still has 49% multi dimensional poverty so why so skewed data?

You need to learn how to read.

The UN Development Programme’s HDI report says that 53.7% of Indians suffer from multi-dimensional poverty as compared to 49.4 % in Pakistan and 57.8% in Bangladesh.

Even in absolute poverty terms, measured for those earning less than $1.25 a day, Pakistan fares better than India. Around 41.6% of Indians in 2005 were earning less than $1.25 a day as compared to 22.6% Pakistanis.



All these articles from November 2011 are saying the same thing.

 

[Omar1984]

Another November 2011 article saying the same thing:

UN report points at higher poverty levels in India than Pakistan

A United Nations report on global poverty, has pointed higher poverty levels in India than Pakistan and the world's second fastest growing economy has been ranked as poorer than Pakistan.

The British newspaper Telegraph, citing the report also pointed more 'gender equality' in conservative Pakistan than in 'tolerant' India.



The newspaper termed the findings as "a wake-up call" for a nation which has taken great pride in its rapid economic growth and the increasing clout of its billionaire business leaders but has failed to share the spoils with its poor.

Britain's Department for International Development has pointed to this chequered progress to justify its continuing aid to India.

The Human Development Report reveals that while India ranks slightly above Pakistan in its level of 'human development' - based on life expectancy, schooling and per capita income - its wider poverty level is worse than Pakistan's.


In absolute terms, 41.6 percent of India's 1.1 billion people earned less than 78 pence per day compared with 22.6 percent of Pakistan's 173 million.
The report quotes its 'multi-dimensional poverty index, which includes measures of schooling, child mortality, nutrition, access to electricity, toilets, drinking water, and hygienic living conditions, and reveals that India is poorer.


It found 53.7 percent of Indians suffering from this broader kind of poverty, compared with 49 percent of Pakistanis.
The newspaper stated that more surprisingly, India is ranked below Pakistan and Bangladesh on gender equality, which reflects maternal death rates, teenage pregnancies, access to education, and the number of women parliamentarians and in the workplace.


India's rural development minister Jairam Ramesh said the report highlighted the prevalence of poverty in the midst of economic growth and the possibility that "actually economic development may lead to retrogression of social indices." Priya Subramanian of Save the Children said India's poor ranking reflected a lack of political will to tackle poverty.


"It is things like healthcare and education which have India lagging behind Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

These countries are well on track and India, with its fast growing economy, has still not got its act together," she said.

"While we have a new band of millionaires, on the other side people continue to suffer endlessly.

Millions still live below the poverty line and go to sleep hungry.

The (economic) growth has not flowed towards them," she added.




UN report points at higher poverty levels in India than Pakistan | Business Recorder

 

[Indrajith]

Even though i dont agree with most of Sasi Tharoor, but i fully agree with his comment that india is not a super power, and i think most of us indians know our issues like poverty, male-female inequality etc..

But one thing we are proud of as a nation is our efforts to over come and our movement in the right direction even though in a snails pace, we are proud of our democracy ( even though some chinees and pakistanis would not agree) but we have at least an above average / good democratic system

And i dont see any where other than in india , where minorities have so much power in politics and power circle, can u tell me any other nation other than in india where all the major post prime minister, president, CJ of suprem court , etc... that has been held by people from minorities

We dont want india to be a super power, but we want india to be a safer place for everyone!

 

[Nitin Goyal]

Wonderful news guys: India has more rich people than the whole Europe continent. :Yahoo:

 

[Omar1984]

Here is an article from November 2011.



Indian poverty levels higher than Pakistan's, says UN report



The report also finds more 'gender equality' in conservative Pakistan than in 'tolerant' India.

Its findings amount to a wake-up call for a nation which has taken great pride in its rapid economic growth and the increasing clout of its billionaire business leaders but has failed to share the spoils with its poor. Britain's Department for Internmational Development has pointed to this chequered progress to justify its continuing aid to India.

The Human Development Report reveals that while India ranks slightly above Pakistan in its level of 'human development' – based on life expectancy, schooling and per capita income – its wider poverty level is worse than Pakistan's.

In absolute terms, 41.6 per cent of India's 1.1 billion people earned less than 78 pence per day compared with 22.6 per cent of Pakistan's 173 million.

The report quotes its 'multi-dimensional poverty index' which includes measures of schooling, child mortality, nutrition, access to electricity, toilets, drinking water, and hygienic living conditions, and reveals India is poorer.
It found 53.7 per cent of Indians suffering from this broader kind of poverty, compared with 49 per cent of Pakistanis.
More surprisingly, India is ranked below Pakistan and Bangladesh on gender equality which reflects maternal death rates, teenage pregnancies, access to education, and the number of women parliamentarians and in the workplace.

India's rural development minister Jairam Ramesh said the report highlighted the prevalence of poverty in the midst of economic growth and the possibility that "actually economic development may lead to retrogression of social indices." Priya Subramanian of Save the Children said India's poor ranking reflected a lack of political will to tackle poverty.

"It is things like healthcare and education which have India lagging behind Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. These countries are well on track and India, with its fast growing economy, has still not got its act together," she said.

"While we have a new band of millionaires, on the other side people continue to suffer endlessly. Millions still live below the poverty line and go to sleep hungry. The [economic] growth has not flowed towards them," she added.



Indian poverty levels higher than Pakistan's, says UN report - Telegraph

Again, I can find dozens of articles from November 2011 saying the same thing about the UN report that India has more poor than Pakistan both in percentage and in number. So time to wake up and accept reality.

 

[SpArK]

Another November 2011 article saying the same thing:

UN report points at higher poverty levels in India than Pakistan






UN report points at higher poverty levels in India than Pakistan | Business Recorder

Dont worry mate.. we are still a poor country and one day we will be super rich like you guys.

 

[Omar1984]

Dont worry mate.. we are still a poor country and one day we will be super rich like you guys.

We are not super rich, but you have no excuse. You are far away from Afghanistan and are not directly affected by war on terror.

Maybe its corruption in India as well...you people keep bragging about your GDP then where is the money going, when you have more than 50% of your population in severe poverty?

South Asian countries all have to battle poverty well maybe except Sri Lanka, but dont lie and hide reality and dont compete with China. People's Republic of China is light years ahead of both Pakistan and India. This is fact.