Srinagar, June 17: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo on Wednesday chaired a high-level review meeting to assess the current status of the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) in Jammu and Kashmir and deliberated upon targeted interventions required for further reducing poverty levels across the UT.
The meeting was attended by Additional Chief Secretary, Power Development Department; Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department; Commissioner Secretary, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs; Commissioner Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring Department; Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education; Commissioner Secretary, Social Welfare Department; Secretary, Rural Development Department and senior officers of the Planning Department. Deputy Commissioners of all districts participated through video conferencing.
Reviewing the incidence of multidimensional poverty in Jammu and Kashmir and the indicators defining deprivation across the three broad dimensions of Health, Education and Standard of Living, the Chief Secretary underscored the need for identification of vulnerable households in each district, initially laying focus on Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) families, to facilitate outcome-oriented interventions.
He directed the Planning Department to undertake a comprehensive analysis of the updated data emerging from the forthcoming NFHS-6 survey and develop district-specific action plans aimed at improving individual indicators and accelerating poverty reduction over time.
The Chief Secretary observed that several Centrally Sponsored Schemes already provide effective instruments for addressing various dimensions of poverty. He highlighted flagship programmes such as the National Food Security Act, Ayushman Bharat, National Education Policy-2020 initiatives, housing schemes, Ujjwala Yojana and financial inclusion programmes as critical tools for improving living standards and reducing deprivation. He emphasized the need for convergence of these schemes and augmentation through capital expenditure wherever required.
He instructed the Planning Department to devise a standardized survey format for district-level assessment of vulnerable households and work closely with district administrations to identify gaps and priority areas requiring focused interventions.
Additional Chief Secretary, Finance, Shailendra Kumar, advised the districts to incorporate poverty reduction initiatives into their annual development plans and stressed the importance of focusing on AAY households for more targeted and actionable interventions.
During the meeting, Commissioner Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring Department, R. Alice Vaz, highlighted that the Multidimensional Poverty Index captures poverty beyond income and reflects deprivations experienced by households across multiple dimensions, thereby serving as an important policy tool for poverty eradication.
She informed that the current baseline MPI estimates are based on NFHS-5 data and were released in July 2023, while NFHS-6 data is presently under finalization and is expected to provide updated insights into multidimensional poverty across the country.
Highlighting the J&K specific insights, the meeting was informed that the Multidimensional Poverty Head Count Ratio declined sharply from 12.56 percent in 2015-16 to 4.80 percent during 2019-21. During the same period, more than 10.45 lakh people moved out of multidimensional poverty, reflecting the positive impact of sustained welfare and development interventions undertaken across the Union Territory.
It was further informed that Jammu and Kashmir is well on course to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of1.2, which envisages reducing multidimensional poverty by at least half before 2030. All twelve indicators used for measuring multidimensional poverty have registered improvements, demonstrating the growing effectiveness of government initiatives at the grassroots level.
Among the districts, it was revealed that Doda, Ramban, Rajouri, Poonch and Udhampur recorded the steepest declines in multidimensional poverty over the assessment period. Rural areas witnessed particularly notable improvement, with the proportion of multi-dimensionally poor population declining from 16.37 percent to 6.10 percent, while urban poverty reduced from 3.51 percent to 1.09 percent.
The intensity of poverty, which measures the average level of deprivation experienced by multi-dimensionally poor households, also improved significantly, declining from 44.17 percent to 42.11 percent, indicating sustained gains in living standards and access to essential services.
Presenting district-wise analysis, the meeting was informed that as per NFHS-5 based estimates for 2019-21, nearly 6.39 lakh persons belonging to around 1.28 lakh families in Jammu and Kashmir were identified as living in multidimensional poverty. While the overall poverty headcount ratio stood at 4.80 percent for the UT.
Ramban recorded the highest Multidimensional Poverty Head Count Ratio at 14.86 percent, followed by Reasi (11.40 percent), Kishtwar (10.59 percent), Udhampur (10.23 percent) and Rajouri (8.07 percent), indicating the need for focused interventions and enhanced service delivery in these districts.
Conversely, Jammu district registered the lowest poverty ratio at 0.49 percent, followed by Srinagar (1.34 percent), Shopian (1.54 percent), Pulwama (2.09 percent) and Samba (2.30 percent), reflecting substantial improvements in socio-economic and developmental indicators.
In terms of absolute numbers, Baramulla accounted for the highest estimated multidimensionally poor population, followed by Udhampur, Rajouri, Kupwara and Ramban, underscoring the importance of district-specific strategies that address both the incidence and intensity of poverty.
The meeting also reviewed the contribution of various government schemes towards reducing multidimensional poverty. It was informed that a broad spectrum of welfare and development programmes spanning health, education, housing, livelihoods, social protection and financial inclusion have collectively contributed to improving living standards and reducing deprivation across Jammu and Kashmir.