India has made significant progress in reducing multidimensional poverty, with a remarkable decline from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23, according to a report by Niti Aayog.
The data indicates a substantial reduction of 17.89%, leading to as many as 248.2 million people being lifted out of poverty during this period.
Uttar Pradesh leads the way with an astounding 59.4 million people breaking free from poverty, followed by Bihar in second place with 37.7 million people, and Madhya Pradesh with 23 million people.
"A decline in the multi-dimensional poverty index indicates an improvement in the quality of life of the people at the bottom regarding income level. It will help India achieve its target of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) within the set time frame of 2030," economist and Associate professor at Bihar Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Dr. Sudanshu Kumar told Sputnik India.
Dr. Kumar's insights told Sputnik India that the improvement in the multi-dimensional poverty could largely be attributed to advances in nutrition, years of schooling, sanitation, and cooking fuel.
"Schemes like Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, which focused on awareness of hygiene, and Ujjwala Yojna, aimed at providing access to clean fuel, have contributed to these improvements. There are significant improvements in terms of years of schooling across the country," Dr. Kumar said.
"The government initiatives to increase access to formal sources of finances through JAM (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile number) initiatives have also contributed to an overall improvement in the index," he added.
"With the people least worried about the lack of basic necessities, they can improve their skills and contribute to economic growth," Dr. Kumar said.
To further reduce the prevalence of poverty across states, it will require additional efforts by the central and state governments.
"Initiatives like aspirational districts and block programmes are expected to help people improve on the indicators listed in the multi-dimensional poverty index," he concluded.