Thiruvananthapuram: The state government of Kerala announced on Saturday that it has entirely eliminated extreme poverty, making it the first Indian state to claim such a milestone.
What was announced
Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, formally declared in a special legislative assembly session on November 1 — coinciding with the state’s formation day — that Kerala has eradicated extreme poverty.
The government said that under the “Extreme Poverty Alleviation Project”, launched in 2021, 64,006 families — comprised of 103,099 individuals — were identified as being “extremely poor” through ground-level surveys using indicators such as housing, food security, health, and livelihood.
“Today’s Kerala Piravi marks a place in history because we have succeeded in making Kerala the first Indian state without extreme poverty. This Legislative Assembly has witnessed many historic laws and policy declarations. The Assembly now meets at a moment that marks yet another milestone in the creation of a Nava Kerala. The eradication of extreme poverty was one of the key decisions taken at the very first cabinet meeting after the new ministry was sworn in in 2021. It was also the beginning of fulfilling one of the most important promises made to the people during the Legislative Assembly election,” the CM said in the Assembly.
The state cited a NITI Aayog study that found Kerala had the lowest poverty rate in India (0.7 %) as the starting data point for its targeted initiative.
How it was done
The project entailed a dedicated programme reaching out to the identified families, with interventions spanning livelihood support, housing, health and nutrition, targeted to the “extremely poor” stratum — even if small in number.
Minister for Local Self-Government MB Rajesh noted that the key was to survey and identify the families first and then deliver customised support — “We understood that it was important to reach out to this population, however small it is, and meet their needs as part of a dedicated programme.”
Responses & reaction
While the government celebrated the achievement, the state opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) led by VD Satheesan walked out of the assembly in protest, calling the claim “pure fraud” and in “contempt” of House rules. Chief Minister Vijayan responded sharply to the criticism: “We only say what we can implement. We have implemented what we had said. That is our reply to the opposition leader.”
