Number of Below Poverty Line Families in Gujarat on the Rise: Report

In 2020-21, 1,047 families fell into the BPL category, with only 14 families managing to move out of it. In 2022-23, the BPL category saw an increase of 303 families, with just one family escaping poverty.

The Wire Staff

number of below poverty line families in gujarat on the rise report

The BPL threshold is set at Rs 816 per capita per month for rural areas and Rs 1,000 for urban areas, which translates to Rs 32 per day for rural residents and Rs 26 for urban residents. Credit: alfarman/Flickr CC BY-NC 2.0

New Delhi: One-third of Gujarat's population, which amounts to over 31 lakh families, is living below the poverty line (BPL).

According to the New Indian Express, the BPL threshold is set at Rs 816 per capita per month for rural areas and Rs 1,000 for urban areas, which translates to Rs 32 per day for urban residents and Rs 26 for rural residents.

According to state minister for rural development Bachubhai Maganbhai Khabad, in response to a question from Congress MLA Tushar Chaudhary on September 14, there are a total of 31,61,310 BPL families identified in Gujarat. Among them, 16,28,744 families are classified as extremely poor, while 15,32,566 are categorised as poor.

Furthermore, the data indicates that the number of families in the BPL category has been increasing over the years.

In 2020-21, 1,047 families fell into the BPL category, with only 14 families managing to move out of it. In 2021-22, 1,751 new families were added to the BPL category, and only two families improved their status. In 2022-23, the BPL category saw an increase of 303 families, with just one family escaping poverty.

Economist Hemant Kumar Shah, based in Ahmedabad, told the newspaper that "if we assume an average of six members per poor family among the 31.64 lakh poor families, it implies that the BPL population in Gujarat totals 1 crore 89 lakh," indicating that approximately one-third of the state's population is living below the poverty line.

This article went live on October third, two thousand twenty three, at fourteen minutes past seven in the evening.

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