Govt fares low on poverty survey

from NDTV

Rahul Shrivastava

A national poverty survey by the National Sample Survey Organisation mocks the claims made by the country's policy makers.

Have the policies made in Parliament gone just one way - away from the poor? Is the question that arises now.

* 20 per cent of people in rural India have only Rs 12 a day to spend.

* Of this percentage each person spends just Rs 7 on food.

* In Orissa and Chhattisgarh 44 per cent people live within this bracket.

The survey says life is a shade better in urban India, where 22 per cent people spend Rs 19 daily.

In urban Bihar 56 per cent live on this amount. The Minister for Rural Development says the government's policies are insensitive.

If you break down the survey, on an average people in villages spend.

* 10 per cent on fuel
* 8 per cent on milk
* 5 per cent on sugar
* 3 per cent on education

This is the reason why crisis, especially medical pushes them towards loan lenders.