Overview

• India’s extreme poverty rate dropped from 27.1% in 2011-12 to 5.3% in 2022-23, according to the latest World Bank data under the $3-a-day threshold.
• The revision of the international poverty line to $3 per day, based on 2021 purchasing power parity updates, added 125 million to global poverty estimates but still showed India bucking the trend.
• Between 2011-12 and 2022-23, an estimated 269 million Indians moved out of extreme poverty, driven by expanded direct benefit transfers, housing and fuel subsidy schemes, and other welfare programs.
• Updated consumption survey methods in 2022-23, including more extensive item tracking and subsidized goods valuation, provided a more accurate picture of household spending patterns.
• In contrast, Pakistan’s poverty rate remained elevated at around 44.7% in 2021, highlighting divergent trajectories in South Asia’s two largest economies.