India Records Major Decline in Poverty: Extreme Poverty Falls from 27.1% to 2.6%

India has made significant progress in reducing poverty over the past twelve years. According to the World Bank’s October 2026 report, the percentage of people living in extreme poverty in India has fallen from 27.1 per cent in 2011 to 2.6 per cent in 2023. The report describes this as one of the fastest declines in poverty in the world. The figures reflect a major change in the lives of millions of Indians. According to the World Bank, around 49.6 crore people moved above the poverty line of $4.20 per day between 2011 and 2023. Poverty at this level declined from 57.7 per cent to 16.1 per cent during the same period. These numbers are important for a country like India, where a large section of the population has traditionally depended on agriculture, daily wages and informal employment for its livelihood. The decline suggests that the economic conditions of millions of households have improved over the years. In 2011, more than half of India’s population was living below the World Bank’s lowermiddle-income poverty line. The situation has changed considerably since then. The reduction in poverty has been linked to several factors, including rising household income, better employment opportunities and government welfare schemes. The World Bank has also pointed to an increase in household consumption, indicating that people are spending more on their daily needs. Employment growth has been one of the important factors behind this improvement. According to the report, employment in India increased by around 13.4 crore between 2017 and 2023. A major part of this growth came from rural women joining paid employment. The increasing participation of women in the workforce is particularly important. It provides families with an additional source of income and gives women greater financial independence. Government welfare schemes have also helped improve the living conditions of poor families. The free foodgrain scheme under the Pradhan MantriGaribKalyan Anna Yojana, housing assistance through the Pradhan MantriAwasYojanaGramin and financial support under PM-KISAN have provided assistance to millions of people. The expansion of Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) has also made it easier for government assistance to reach beneficiaries directly through their bank accounts. Poverty has remained an important political issue in India. Governments have often highlighted their achievements in reducing poverty, while opposition parties have questioned the figures and the methods used to calculate them. The Congress has questioned earlier poverty reduction claims made by NITI Aayog. It has also raised concerns about the poverty line used by the World Bank and changes in household surveys. However, the latest World Bank report provides important evidence of the decline. While political parties may differ over who deserves credit, the improvement reflected in the figures deserves recognition. At the same time, India’s progress in poverty reduction did not begin in 2014. Poverty had also declined between 2004–05 and 2011–12. Programmes such as MGNREGA and the National Food Security Act played an important role in supporting poor households during that period. Despite this progress, India still has several challenges to address. Moving above the international poverty line does not automatically mean that every family has a secure income or access to good healthcare, education and employment. The next challenge is to create more stable jobs, improve wages and provide better opportunities for young people. Greater participation of women in the workforce and development in rural areas will also be important. The fall in extreme poverty from 27.1 per cent to 2.6 per cent is a significant achievement. But the larger goal must be to ensure that people who have moved out of poverty do not fall back into it. The latest World Bank figures show how much India has progressed. The task ahead is to sustain this progress and ensure that the benefits of economic growth reach every section of society.