𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐀’𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:

• The 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤 reported that India made remarkable progress in reducing poverty across both monetary and non-monetary dimensions over the last decade.
• The share of the population living below the 𝐋𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞-𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 ($4.2/day) fell from 57.7% in 2011 to 16.1% in 2023, lifting 496 million people out of poverty.
• 𝐄𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 ($3.00/day) declined significantly from 27.1% to 2.6% between 2011 and 2023.
• The 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐱 (MPI), as measured by 𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐈, decreased sharply from 53.8% in 2005–06 to 16.4% in 2019–21.
• Employment increased by approximately 134 million people between 2017 and 2023, largely driven by rural women entering paid work.
• Major challenges persist, including wage disparities and the geographical concentration of poverty in the Uttar Pradesh–West Bengal belt.

𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:

• The findings were released in the 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤’𝐬 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 2026 𝐏𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐄𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐟 for India, highlighting one of the fastest poverty reductions globally.
• The report projects a continued, although more gradual, decline in poverty across India in the coming years.
• Finance Minister 𝐍𝐢𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐚 𝐒𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐧 attributed the progress to strong consumption growth, rising employment—particularly among women—and expanded social transfers such as food subsidies.
• Despite overall employment growth, 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 rose from 14.6% to 15.9% between Q1 FY2026 and Q1 FY2027, particularly affecting rural young women.
• The geographical concentration of poverty, with 57% of India’s poor residing in the Uttar Pradesh–West Bengal belt, highlights persistent regional disparities.
• The 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐌𝐏𝐈 measure stood at 15.5% in 2022–23, further indicating a decline in non-monetary poverty.

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐝:

• 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤: An international financial institution that provides financial and technical assistance to developing countries.
• 𝐋𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞-𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞: A poverty threshold set by the World Bank at $4.2 per day, used for measuring poverty in lower-middle-income economies.
• 𝐄𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲: A condition of severe material deprivation, measured by the World Bank’s international poverty line of $3.00 per day.
• 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐱 (MPI): A measure developed by 𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐈 and 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐏 that assesses poverty through multiple deprivations in health, education and living standards.