Monthly Archives: June 2011

What can be bought for Rs. 19 in current times when commodity costs are skyscrapping high and inflation rate is consistently in double-digits ? One cannot even buy a litre of milk for Rs. 19, forget about having an entire meal. But that is the cut-off our planning commission has given for ‘Below Poverty Line’ families. What it means is that any family spending more than Rs. 578 a month on their basic needs cannot be termed as poor. And this is the limit is for urban people. In rural areas, this figure is even lower at Rs. 15 a day for all expenses put together. By this definition, they basically only want to deem them as poor, who are assured to be dead by the time relief reaches them. Continue reading →