HYDERABAD: The recently-released data on states and their rankings based on their performance in reaching sustainable development goals (SDG) seems to have missed Telangana’s data on percentage of population living below the poverty line (BPL).
The first SDG of ending poverty by 2030 had set the target of reducing the number of BPL people to 10.96 per cent but the report mentioned the state’s data as ‘null’.
Experts pointed out that the state had actually progressed well in reaching its target.
Interestingly, Telangana is the only state in whose case this data is mentioned as null.
The government has taken note of this and sources within the government said that while Centre had applied the Tendulkar Committee’s figures on poverty as baseline to talk about the numbers, it did not apply the same to Telangana.
Telangana achieved 69 marks under this SDG — even without BPL sub-parameter.
According to Tendulkar Committee estimates, 21.92 per cent of the population was living below the poverty line in 2011-12.
The target is to reduce the percentage of of poverty by half.
Six states and seven UTs have already achieved the target of reducing poverty rates to below 10.96 per cent.
Among states, Goa and Andaman and Nicobar among UTs, have the lowest poverty rates at 5.09 per cent and 1 per cent respectively.
Though Tendulakar committee findings are taken as baseline, there were other reports on people under below poverty line in between.
“Even the NSS date shed light on people in poverty but that was not taken into consideration” an expert said.
Experts said that though the state’s data was not captured by Niti Aayog, other growth indicators indicate Telangana has reduced poverty to the desired level.