Way forward

Need for credible & updated poverty framework

1. Ensure proper identification of beneficiaries for govt schemes like PDS, Ayushman Bharat.

2. Represent demographic shifts. Currently most schemes use SECC 2011 data which is more than a decade old.

3. Monitoring welfare outcomes - in the absence of data, progress cannot be tracked.

4. Outdated poverty lines - Tendulkar threshold of ₹24 (rural) & ₹33 (urban) does not coexist with lived realities as this figure is insufficient to ensure even 3

5. Meeting SDGs - 1 (ending poverty), 2 (zero hunger), 3 (well being & health), 6 (clean drinking water & sanitation), 10 (reducing inequalities), among others.

6. Meet dynamic challenges relates to poverty such as hidden hunger, anemia in women, urban poverty.

7. Global credibility due to proactive engagement in poverty reduction.

While the recent figures which state 25 cr people were brought out of poverty in India are comforting, better framework is necessary to continue true progress.