Rangarajan committee report: 11 of 20 states have fewer percent of poor than Gujarat

Latest report on measuring poverty authored by a committee headed by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor C Rangarajan, has found that as many as 11 major Indian states out of 20 have fewer percent of poor than Gujarat. Submitted to the Modi government as a plea to come up with a new poverty criterion that takes into account “public expenditure that is being incurred in areas like education, health and food security”, and linking it with consumer price index, the report says that Gujarat has 27.4 per cent below poverty line people (BPL), or 1.69 crore – 1.1 crore in rural areas (31.4 per cent) and 5.89 crore (22.2 pe cent) in urban areas.
Basing on two separate surveys, carried out by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), the Government of India’s data collection centre, and the top independent body, Centre for Monitoring Economic Economy (CMIE), the survey, commissioned to the committee about a year ago, has found that at the all-India level there are 36.30 crore BPL -- or 29.5 per cent of the total population: 30.9 per cent in rural areas and 26.4 per cent in urban areas. The survey results are based on data collected by the NSSO and CMIE in 2011-12.
The states which have less per cent of poor than Gujarat are Himachal Pradesh 10.9 per cent, Punjab 11.3 per cent, Kerala 11.3 per cent, Haryana 12.5 per cent, Andhra Pradesh 13.7 per cent, Jammu & Kashmir 15.1 per cent, Uttarakhand 17.8 per cent, Maharashtra 20 per cent, Rajasthan 21.7 per cent, Karnataka 21.9 per cent and Tamil Nadu 22.4 per cent. The report compares percentage of BPL in 2011-12 with that of two years earlier – 2009-10. It has found that the number of states with less per cent of poor than Gujarat has remained unchanged – then too 11 major states had less percentage of poor.

The comparison suggests that Gujarat has slipped in poverty in the rural areas. Thus, while the percentage of poor in rural Gujarat came down from 37 per cent to 31.4 per cent between 2009-10 and 2011-12, the all-India rural BPL has dropped much faster – from 39.6 per cent to 30.9 per cent. There were 10 states with less percentage of rural BPL than Gujarat in 2009-10, which increased to 12 in 2011-12. As for the urban poverty, Gujarat (with a BPL of 22.2 per cent) improved its position somewhat – there were eight states having less percentage of poor than the state in 2011-12 as against nine in 2009-10.
In Gujarat, according to the report, anyone with a lesser spending capacity of Rs 1,103 in rural areas and Rs 1,507 in urban areas is below poverty line. Observers say, the Rangarajan committee report goes to prove the long-standing view taken by experts who say that growth rate alone cannot lead to reduction in poverty. Official data seek to suggest that Gujarat has grown much faster than most Indian states in agricultural growth. However, the rural poverty in Gujarat has failed to come down as fast as other states.

Comments

Disappearing schools: India's education landscape undergoing massive changes

The other day, I received a message from education rights activist Mitra Ranjan, who claims that a whopping one lakh schools across India have been closed down or merged. This seemed unbelievable at first sight. The message from the activist, who is from the advocacy group Right to Education (RTE) Forum, states that this is happening as part of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, which floated the idea of school integration/consolidation.

'Shameful lies': Ambedkar defamed, Godse glorified? Dalit leader vows legal battle

A few days back, I was a little surprised to receive a Hindi article in plain text format from veteran Gujarat Dalit rights leader Valjibhai Patel , known for waging many legal battles under the banner of the Council of Social Justice (CSJ) on behalf of socially oppressed communities.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. I don't know who owns this site, for there is nothing on it in the About Us link. It merely says, the Nashik Corporation site "is an educational and news website of the municipal corporation. Today, education and payment of tax are completely online." It goes on to add, "So we provide some of the latest information about Property Tax, Water Tax, Marriage Certificate, Caste Certificate, etc. So all taxpayer can get all information of their municipal in a single place.some facts about legal and financial issues that different city corporations face, but I was least interested in them." Surely, this didn't interest...

When a telecom giant fails the consumer: My Airtel experience

Initially, I was not considering writing this blog about why I found Airtel —one of India’s premier communication service providers—to have an outrageously poor sales and customer-service experience, at least in Ahmedabad , Gujarat ’s business capital. However, the last SMS I received from Airtel regarding my request for a Wi-Fi connection in my flat in the Vejalpur area left me stunned.

Varnashram Dharma: How Gandhi's views evolved, moved closer to Ambedkar's

My interaction with critics and supporters of Mahatma Gandhi, ranging from those who consider themselves diehard Gandhians to Left-wing and Dalit intellectuals, has revealed that in the long arc of his public life, few issues expose his philosophical tensions more than his shifting stance on Varnashram Dharma—the ancient Hindu concept that society should be divided into four varnas, or classes, based on duties and aptitudes.

RTI framework ‘nuked’? SHANTI Bill triggers alarm, grants centre sweeping secrecy powers

Has the Government of India finally moved to completely change important provisions of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, that too without bringing about any amendment in the top transparency law? It would seem so, if one is to believe well known civil society leaders' keen observations on the nuclear energy Bill passed in the Lok Sabha. Senior RTI activist Amrita Johri has sharply criticised the recently passed Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025, saying that it has effectively “nuked” the Right to Information (RTI) Act through the back door.

From colonial mercantilism to Hindutva: New book on the making of power in Gujarat

Professor Ghanshyam Shah ’s latest book, “ Caste-Class Hegemony and State Power: A Study of Gujarat Politics ”, published by Routledge , is penned by one of Gujarat ’s most respected chroniclers, drawing on decades of fieldwork in the state. It seeks to dissect how caste and class factors overlap to perpetuate the hegemony of upper strata in an ostensibly democratic polity. The book probes the dominance of two main political parties in Gujarat—the Indian National Congress and the BJP—arguing that both have sustained capitalist growth while reinforcing Brahmanic hierarchies.

Punishing senior citizens? Flipkart, Shopsy stop Cash on Delivery in Ahmedabad!

The other day, someone close to me attempted to order some goodies on Flipkart and its subsidiary Shopsy. After preparing a long list of items, this person, as usual, opted for the Cash on Delivery (popularly known as COD) option, as this senior citizen isn't very familiar with online prepaid payment methods like UPI, credit or debit cards, or online bank transfers through websites. In fact, she is hesitant to make online payments, fearing, "I may make a mistake," she explained, adding, "I read a lot about online frauds, so I always choose COD as it's safe. I have no knowledge of how to prepay online."

Would breaking idols, burning books annihilate caste? Recalling a 1972 Dalit protest

A few days ago, I received an email alert from a veteran human rights leader who has fought many battles in Gujarat for the Dalit cause — both through ground-level campaigns and courtroom struggles. The alert, sent in Gujarati by Valjibhai Patel, who heads the Council for Social Justice, stated: “In 1935, Babasaheb Ambedkar burnt the Manusmriti . In 1972, we broke the idol of Krishna , whom we regarded as the creator of the varna (caste) system.”

Search This Blog