New Delhi: There is no separate estimate on the number of farmers living below the poverty line, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar, has informed the Lok Sabha on today.
In response to a question asked by Sukhbir Singh Jaunapuria, Member of Parliament from Tonk-Sawai Madhopur constituency, the minister has answered that there is no significant data to know the number of farmers living below the poverty line.
Over one billion people in the developing countries are poor, with a substantial majority of them living in rural areas. The development of the agriculture sector can play a significant role in rural poverty alleviation since the majority of rural poor depends on agriculture as their primary source of income.
From a policy perspective, it’s essential to know the characteristics and the figures of the farmers living in underprivileged conditions.
The government conducts extensive sample surveys through the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, for periodical estimation of the population living below the poverty line.
As per Planning Commission’s estimates based on Consumption Expenditure Survey(2011-12) constructed by NSSO, the rural population living below the poverty line was 216.65 million in 2011-12.
