Chapter Overview

Poverty (गरीबी), unemployment (बेरोज़गारी) and inclusive growth (समावेशी विकास) are where the Economy syllabus meets people’s lives. This chapter explains how India measures poverty and unemployment, why the numbers are debated, and what the State has done about them, from IRDP in 1978 to the VB-G RAM G Act that replaced MGNREGA on 1 July 2026. Chhattisgarh gives this chapter a sharp state angle: it had India’s highest poverty ratio in 2011–12, the lowest consumption spending among major states in 2023–24, and some of the country’s best-known welfare delivery (its PDS and the Bihan SHG network).

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

Trace India’s poverty lines from Naoroji to the Tendulkar and Rangarajan committees and quote the 2011–12 numbers
Explain the Global and National Multidimensional Poverty Index and the World Bank’s $3.00 line
Read HCES 2023–24 consumption data and the Gini coefficient, and place Chhattisgarh in them
Classify unemployment (disguised, seasonal, structural and others) and compare usual, weekly and daily status
Calculate LFPR, WPR and the unemployment rate and summarise the latest PLFS
Trace anti-poverty programmes from IRDP and JRY to MGNREGA, VB-G RAM G and DAY-NRLM (Bihan)
Define inclusive growth and evaluate financial inclusion, food security and social security schemes
Write balanced Mains answers on poverty measurement, jobless growth and the right to work, with a Chhattisgarh angle

Prerequisites

Basic Concepts and National Income — per capita income, sectors and real vs nominal values
Economic Planning and NITI Aayog — the plans that set poverty and inclusion goals

Learning Path

Follow the topics in this order:

graph TD
    A["1. Measuring Poverty
poverty lines, HCES,
MPI, Gini"] --> B["2. Unemployment
types, UPS/CWS/CDS,
PLFS"]
    B --> C["3. Programmes
IRDP to NRLM,
MGNREGA to VB-G RAM G"]
    C --> D["4. Inclusive Growth
financial inclusion,
food and social security"]
    D --> E["5. Quick Revision
One-page sheet"]
    E --> F["Related:
Chhattisgarh Economy and Schemes"]

Topics in This Chapter

#	Topic	What it covers
1	Measuring Poverty and Inequality	Absolute vs relative poverty, HCR and poverty gap; Naoroji to Rangarajan; 2011–12 estimates; HCES 2023–24; Global and National MPI; World Bank line; Lorenz curve and Gini; Chhattisgarh data
2	Unemployment: Types, Measurement and Trends	LFPR, WPR, UR; disguised, seasonal, structural, frictional and other types; UPS, UPSS, CWS, CDS; PLFS and its 2025 revamp; India’s jobs problem; Chhattisgarh’s labour market and migration
3	Poverty Alleviation and Employment Programmes	Three strategies; timeline from CDP to VB-G RAM G; MGNREGA features and assessment; VB-G RAM G Act 2025; DAY-NRLM and Bihan; PMEGP, MUDRA, Stand-Up India, PM Vishwakarma; PMAY; skilling and PM-VBRY
4	Inclusive Growth and Social Security	Meaning; 11th and 12th Plans; PMJDY and JAM; insurance and pension schemes; NFSA and PMGKAY; PM-JAY; Aspirational Districts and PM-JANMAN; Chhattisgarh’s PDS and state transfers
—	Quick Revision	Every committee, number, scheme and trap on one page

Where It Is Asked

Paper	What to expect
Prelims P-I (Part 1, India GS)	Committee–feature matching (Alagh, Lakdawala, Tendulkar, Rangarajan); MPI indicators; definitions of disguised and seasonal unemployment; UPS vs CWS vs CDS; scheme years and mergers (SGSY, JRY, NREGA); MGNREGA and VB-G RAM G features; PMJDY, PMJJBY, PMSBY, APY, NFSA details
Prelims P-I (Part 2, Chhattisgarh)	Bihan, the state PDS and Food Security Act (2012), Chhattisgarh’s poverty and consumption figures, state schemes
Mains P-V (GS-III), Economy section	Short answers (disguised vs seasonal unemployment; HCR vs poverty gap; pro-poor vs inclusive growth) and long answers (poverty measurement debate; jobless growth; MGNREGA to VB-G RAM G; financial inclusion; inclusive growth in Chhattisgarh)

Exam focus

High-yield: Tendulkar (21.9%, ₹816/₹1,000) vs Rangarajan (29.5%, ₹972/₹1,407) for 2011–12; Chhattisgarh 39.93% (highest, 2011–12); MPI = H × A with 12 national indicators; CDS > CWS > usual status; VB-G RAM G: 125 days, 60-day pause, 60:40, in force 1 July 2026.
Common mistakes: calling Rangarajan the official line; giving Alagh’s calorie norms to Tendulkar; dividing the unemployed by the population; writing that MGNREGA is still in force after July 2026.
Chhattisgarh angle for Mains: low MPCE despite industry-heavy GSDP; seasonal migration; Bihan SHGs; the PDS model; the burden of the new 40% State share in rural employment.

Quick Reference: The Chapter at a Glance

Item	Key fact
Last official poverty estimate	2011–12, Tendulkar method: 21.9% (Chhattisgarh 39.93%, highest)
Rangarajan (2014)	29.5% for 2011–12; not adopted
HCES 2023–24	MPCE ₹4,122 rural, ₹6,996 urban; Chhattisgarh lowest among major states (₹2,739 / ₹4,927)
National MPI (NITI Aayog)	24.85% → 14.96% (2015–16 to 2019–21); CG 29.90% → 16.37%
World Bank	$3.00 a day (2021 PPP) from June 2025; India 27.1% → 5.3% (2011–12 to 2022–23)
PLFS 2025 (Jan–Dec)	LFPR 59.3%, WPR 57.4%, UR 3.1% (usual status, 15+)
MGNREGA	2005; 100 days per household; replaced from 1 July 2026
VB-G RAM G Act 2025	Assent 21 Dec 2025; 125 days; 60-day farm pause; 60:40 (90:10 NE/Himalayan)
DAY-NRLM	June 2011 (Aajeevika); Chhattisgarh: Bihan
Inclusive growth	Theme of the 11th Plan (2007–12); 12th added “sustainable”
PMJDY	28 August 2014; zero-balance accounts; base of the JAM trinity
NFSA	2013; 75% rural, 50% urban; Chhattisgarh’s own Act came first (December 2012)

Start Learning

Begin with the first topic:

→ Measuring Poverty and Inequality