03 April 2025 : Indian Express Editorial Analysis

1. When democracy cuts across

(Source – Indian Express, Section – The Ideas Page – Page No. – 11)

Addressing Poverty as a Democratic Imperative

• Democracy is not just about holding free and fair elections; it is also about ensuring that the elected government addresses the needs of all sections of society, particularly the marginalized and vulnerable.
• This analysis aims to quantitatively assess the performance of the Narendra Modi government in reducing poverty among different social and religious groups from 2011-12 to 2023-24.
• Poverty is more than just a lack of material resources; it deprives individuals of dignity and acts as a significant barrier to social mobility.

Measuring Poverty: The Rangarajan Poverty Line

• To assess poverty, this study uses the 2011-12 poverty line defined by the expert group led by C Rangarajan in 2014.
• Though not officially accepted by the Indian government, this poverty line is widely regarded for its reliability.
• It is based on the modified mixed recall period (MMRP), which collects detailed data on household expenditures, making it a more accurate estimation of poverty.
• Additionally, it accounts for both food and non-food essentials, ensuring a comprehensive measure of poverty.
• The poverty line for 2023-24 was adjusted using state and Union Territory (UT) level data from the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to maintain accuracy in assessing economic conditions.

Data and Methodology: Nationally Representative Surveys

• This analysis relies on data from the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
• The 2011-12 survey covered over 1 lakh households, while the 2023-24 survey expanded its scope to over 2.5 lakh households.
• These large-scale surveys provide a credible basis for assessing poverty trends across different social and religious groups.

Overall Decline in Poverty: A National Perspective

The findings indicate a remarkable decline in poverty over the last 12 years.

• In rural areas, poverty declined from 30.4% to 3.9%.
• In urban areas, poverty fell from 26.4% to 3.9%.

Religious Groups: Bridging the Economic Divide

The study also highlights poverty reduction across religious groups, with a notable improvement in the economic conditions of Muslims and Hindus.

• In rural India (2011-12), the poverty rate among Muslims was 31.7%, while for Hindus, it was 30.9%. By 2023-24, poverty among Muslims dropped to 2.4%, while for Hindus, it fell to 4%.
• In urban India (2011-12), the Muslim poverty rate was 39.4%, compared to 24.4% for Hindus—a 15 percentage point gap. By 2023-24, Muslim poverty declined to 5.7%, while Hindu poverty dropped to 3.7%, reducing the gap to just 2 percentage points.
  
  

This convergence indicates that poverty reduction policies have benefited all religious groups, with a particularly higher percentage decline in poverty among Muslims than Hindus.

Social Groups: The Upliftment of SCs, STs, and OBCs

The study further evaluates poverty trends among social groups, showing substantial improvements in economic conditions for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and the General category.

Rural India:

• STs: Poverty declined from 49.5% to 12.2% (a gap reduction of 18.9 percentage points compared to the General category).
• SCs: Poverty fell from 46.9% to 7.8%, significantly narrowing the poverty gap with the General category.
• OBCs: Poverty reduced from 30.4% to 3.6%, showing impressive improvement.
  
  

Urban India:

• SCs: The highest poverty rate in 2011-12 was 39.6%, which dropped to 6.6% by 2023-24 (a 33 percentage point decline).
• STs: Poverty declined from 38.2% to 9.9%.
• OBCs: The poverty rate fell significantly, demonstrating broad economic progress across backward communities.

These findings suggest that the highest decline in poverty among vulnerable groups has been among SCs, followed by STs and then OBCs, indicating widespread socio-economic inclusion.

Conclusion:

• This analysis demonstrates that India’s poverty reduction efforts have been both significant and inclusive.
• The economic policies and welfare programs implemented under the Modi government have had a far-reaching impact, particularly on religious minorities and socially disadvantaged groups.
• The substantial reduction in poverty among Muslims, SCs, STs, and OBCs highlights the government’s commitment to democratic ideals in practice—ensuring the upliftment of all sections of society, beyond electoral considerations.
• Despite political debates and ideological divides, the data-driven evidence indicates that poverty reduction in India has been broad-based and impactful, reinforcing the idea that democracy is not just about elections but also about addressing fundamental human needs and ensuring social and economic justice.

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