Dimapur, March 28 (MExN): The Government of Nagaland has disputed the claims of the Media that Nagaland has one of the highest populations of the poor. Responding with figures, the State has said that in fact Nagaland’s poverty level is one of the lowest in the country according to recent data of the Planning Commission of India.
Chief Secretary of Nagaland Lalthara issued a rejoinder today saying that the State is not disputing the figures prepared by the Planning Commission of India but for the fact that the data concerning poverty in Nagaland were highlighted giving it a misleading perception rather than the factual information.
The State said a careful study of the poverty chart indicates that something is amiss in the base data of the percentage. The Below Poverty Line (BPL) population, the State said, as percentage of the total population for year 204-2005 for Nagaland was shown at 8%. This is apparently a case of underreporting for the reason that the comparative base figures of the other Northeastern states are 30% for Sikkim, 16.1% for Meghalaya, 37.9% for Manipur, 15.4% for Mizoram, 31.4% for Arunachal Pradesh, 34.4% for Assam and 40% for Tripura. “Thus the average level of poverty in the other seven northeast states in the base year 2004-2005 was 29.44% whereas it was shown to be only 8% in the case of Nagaland,” the government said.
On the current level of poverty according to the latest report of the Planning Commission for year 2009-2010 (reporting year), the rejoinder said, Nagaland stands at 20.9%. The average level of poverty in the eight NE states as in 2009-2010 stands at 25% and therefore, the government said, Nagaland’s poverty level is still lower than the average level of poverty.
“Even if we take the level of poverty (as on 2009-2010) in some of the bigger and more progressive mainland states, they are much higher than that of Nagaland, as per the Planning Commission’s figures. For example, it is 24.5% in Maharashtra, 23% in Gujarat, 21.1% in Andhra Pradesh, 23.6% in Karnataka, 24.8% in Rajasthan, 26% in West Bengal, 36.7% in Madhya Pradesh, 37% in Orissa, 37.7% in Uttar Pradesh, 39.1% in Jharkhand, 48.7% in Chhattisgarh and 53.5% in Bihar. So 20.9% of poverty level in Nagaland is nothing to shout about or to put in bold headlines.”
The government also pointed out that the reason for the underreporting of BPL families in the base year of 2004-2005 could have been due to “apathy or ignorance.” However, the State said, with better implementation and delivery of many centrally-sponsored schemes for the benefit of BPL families by the state government in recent years, the poor people in the state are increasingly coming out to register themselves as BPL families.
“That is why the percentage increase from 2004-2005 to 2009-2010 has been high. But let us remember that the actual number of BPL families in Nagaland is still among the lowest in the country as per figures of the Planning Commission indicated above,” the rejoinder added.
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