Prelims 2022 · CSAT / Reading Comprehension · Question 12
Why is the methodology adopted in India to count the 'poor' debatable?
Answer
It is based on the proposition of poverty as meagre income or buying capacity.
- (a) Poverty line in India has indeed been debated, but this is not the core methodological criticism asked here. The main issue is the narrow basis used to define poverty. Verdict: Not the best answer.
- (b) Rural-urban diversity exists, and separate poverty lines have been used, but diversity alone does not explain why the methodology itself is debatable. Verdict: Not correct as the main reason.
- (c) Absence of a uniform global standard is true in general, but India’s poverty-counting debate is about its own method, not global comparability. Verdict: Not correct.
- (d) India’s poverty estimation has been criticized because it largely treats poverty as inadequate income/consumption or purchasing capacity, ignoring multidimensional deprivation. Verdict: Correct.