The 52-page paper authored by Surjit S Bhalla, Karan Bhasin and Arvind Virmani, also reveals that the expansion of India’s food subsidy program absorbed a major part of the pandemic shock. As per the paper, extreme poverty was as low as 1% in 2019 - a substantial reduction in poverty rates from 2011 levels.
The paper argues that incorporation of the food subsidy data has helped it conclude that the 'official poverty line' must be moved from (Population living on <$1) PPP $1.9 to $3.2. In terms of rupees, moving from Rs. 865 per person per month to Rs 2250 per person per month.
The paper also counters another Pew research paper that 75 million Indians were pushed into poverty, claiming that data was calculated in the absence of an 'official' Consumption Expenditure Survey (2017-18). Furthermore it claims that 'extreme poverty' has been eradicated in India.
