The number of poor in India.

When the number of poor is estimated as the proportion of people below the poverty line, it is known as the 'Head Count Ratio'. In other words, Head count ratio is calculated by dividing the number of people below the poverty line by the total population.

Number and Proportion of People Below Poverty Line:

  • Number of People Below Poverty Line: In 1973-74, more than 320 million people were below the poverty line. In 2011-12, this number has come down to about 270 million.
  • The proportion of People Below Poverty Line: In terms of proportion, in 1973-74, about 55% of the total population was below the poverty line. In 2011-12, it has fallen to 22%
  • From 1973-74 to 2011-12, there has been a considerable decline in the number of poor and their proportion, but the nature of the decline in the two parameters is not encouraging. The rate is declining much slower than the absolute number of poor in the country.

The extent of Urban-Rural Poverty

  • In 1973-74, more than 80% of the poor reside in rural areas and this situation has not changed even in 2011-12. It means, of the poor in India still reside in villages. In addition, poverty, which was prevailing predominantly in rural areas, has shifted to urban areas.
  • In the 1990s, the absolute number of poor in rural areas had declined, whereas the number of their urban counterparts increased marginally. The poverty ratio declined continuously for both urban and rural areas.
  • The gap between the absolute number of poor in rural and urban areas got reduced, where in the case of ratio, the gap has remained the same until 1999-2000 and has widened from 2011-12

State-Level Trends in Poverty

  • Five states (Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha) account for about 70% of India's poor. During 1973-74, about of the population in most of these large states was living below the poverty line.
  • The diagram reveals that six states (Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa) contained a large section of the poor in 1973-74.
  • During 1973-to 2012, many Indian states (like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu) reduced the poverty levels to a considerable extent.