Extreme poverty in India has decreased by 12.3 percent in 2019 compared to 2011. The poverty figure has come down from 22.5% in 2011 to 10.2% in 2019. There has been a comparatively sharp decline in poverty in rural areas. This information has been given in the Working Paper of World Bank Policy Research.
The working paper published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also said that India has almost eliminated extreme poverty. Also, consumption inequality is at its lowest level in 40 years through state-provided food handouts.
Greater reduction in poverty in rural areas
Poverty reduction is higher in rural areas as compared to urban India. Rural poverty declined from 26.3% in 2011 to 11.6% in 2019, while the decline in urban areas declined from 14.2% to 6.3% during the same period. The World Bank working paper states that rural and urban poverty declined by 14.7 and 7.9 percentage points during 2011-2019. Poverty in India has decreased over the past decade, but not as much as previously thought.
The paper is jointly co-authored by economists Sutirth Sinha Roy and Roy van der Weid. The purpose of the World Bank Policy Research Papers is to encourage the exchange of ideas on development and to quickly disseminate research results.
Farmers with small holdings also benefited
According to the study, farmers with smaller holdings have experienced higher income growth. It said, “Real income for farmers with the smallest holdings increased by 10 percent annually between the two survey rounds (2013 and 2019), while those with the largest holdings increased by 2 percent. ”
The World Bank paper is crucial, as India does not have any official estimates of the recent period. The final expenditure survey was released by the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) in 2011, when the country also released official estimates of poverty and inequality.