-The Business Standard Public discussion on falling poverty hits a new low The Lok Sabha was adjourned for a short duration on Wednesday following an uproar over the government’s latest figures for poverty. This follows widespread public outrage at those figures. A dispassionate observer of this discussion may be led to conclude that either poverty has risen dramatically or the government has somehow fudged the figures inexcusably and obviously. Elsewhere perhaps,...

-The Hindustan Times The Planning Commission on Tuesday admitted of a serious flaw in the National Sample Survey data and national accounts, which led to pegging the poverty line at Rs 28 per capita daily consumption in cities. Plan panel deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia said the discrepancy between the consumer survey, on whose basis the poverty number were derived, and national accounts was a serious statistical problem. The commission...

-The Times of India Even as the opposition accused the government of tampering with poverty figures, Planning Commission stuck to its stand that poverty had declined by 7.3% between 2004-05 and 2009-10, a period when the Congress-led UPA has been in power. "You can put whatever poverty line you want, the fact is... the decline in poverty is twice the decline in the previous 11 years," Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh...

-The Hindustan Times The planning commission has released poverty data based on the 66th round of the National Sample Survey (2009-10) on household Consumer Expenditure Survey. According to the new estimate, number of poor in India were 29.8% in 2009-10, down from 37.2% in 2004-05. The data is based on the daily per capita consumption of Rs 28 in urban cities and Rs 22 in rural areas in 2009-10. The same for June...

The Planning Commission on Monday released the latest poverty estimates for the country showing a decline in the incidence of poverty by 7.3 per cent over the past five years and stating that anyone with a daily consumption expenditure of Rs. 28.35 and Rs. 22.42 in urban and rural areas respectively is above the poverty line. The new poverty estimates for 2011-12 will only add to the furore triggered by the...