13.5 crore Indians move out of multidimensional poverty in 5 years: Niti Aayog report

India witnessed 13.5 crore people moving out of multidimensional poverty between 2015-16 and 2019-21 with fastest reduction in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Rajasthan, a Niti Aayog report said on Monday. The report -- 'National Multidimensional Poverty Index: A progress of Review 2023' -- was released by Suman Bery, Vice-Chairman, Niti Aayog.

"India has registered a significant decline of 9.89 percentage points in number of India's multidimensionally poor from 24.85 per cent in 2015-16 to 14.96 per cent in 2019-21," it said.

The National MPI measures simultaneous deprivations across three equally weighted dimensions of health, education, and standard of living that are represented by 12 sustainable development goal (SDG) aligned indicators.

The report said rural areas witnessed the fastest decline in poverty from 32.59 per cent to 19.28 per cent, while the urban areas saw a reduction in poverty from 8.65 per cent to 5.27 per cent.

Providing multidimensional poverty estimates for the 36 states and Union Territories, and 707 administrative districts, the report said the fastest reduction in the proportion of multidimensional poor was observed in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Rajasthan.

In the five years, the MPI value halved from 0.117 to 0.066 and intensity of poverty reduced from 47 per cent to 44 per cent, thereby setting India on the path of achieving the SDG target 1.2 (of reducing multidimensional poverty by at least half) much ahead of the stipulated timeline of 2030.

Niti Aayog said the government's dedicated focus on improving access to sanitation, nutrition cooking fuel, financial inclusion, drinking water, and electricity has led to significant advancements in these areas.

"All 12 parameters of the MPI have shown marked improvements," the report showed.

It further said improvements in nutrition, years of schooling, sanitation, and cooking fuel played a significant role in bringing down poverty.