Shillong: Meghalaya government has termed the poverty rate projected by the Planning Commission for Meghalaya as “unrealistic”, claiming that the survey conducted by the state’s Rural Department estimates that the state has more than double the number of BPL families as compared to the projection by the Centre.
“The poverty estimates of the Planning Commission shows the North East in general and Meghalaya in particular as having less BPL families than the rest of the country,” chief minister DD Lapang said.
“A draft document on poverty eradication in North Eastern Region should be finalized and published by National Institute of Rural Development immediately,” an official statement quoted Lapang as saying during the 58th meeting of North Eastern Council in Guwahati yesterday.
Meghalaya food and civil supplies minister, Ampareen Lyngdoh said, “While the Planning Commission in 1993-94 had indicated the poverty rate of Meghalaya at 40.86%, in 2004-05 it was mentioned as 18.50%. This is an unrealistic projection.”
She said as per the survey conducted by the State Rural Department in 2002, there were 2,05,234 BPL families in the rural areas alone which comes to around 48.90% of the total rural households.
“It would therefore be disastrous to reduce the number of BPL families and the allocation of food-grains at this juncture where the prices of essential commodities are exorbitantly high. The Centre should enhance the allocation,” the minister said.
She said the availability of sugar of between January 2008 to September 2009 was just 38 per cent and urged the Centre to increase the stock allotted to the state.
“The shortfall in the requirement of rice is around 24 lakh MT, which has to be procured from the open market. The dependency on the open market is up to 95%,” Lyngdoh added.
“The poverty estimates of the Planning Commission shows the North East in general and Meghalaya in particular as having less BPL families than the rest of the country,” chief minister DD Lapang said.
“A draft document on poverty eradication in North Eastern Region should be finalized and published by National Institute of Rural Development immediately,” an official statement quoted Lapang as saying during the 58th meeting of North Eastern Council in Guwahati yesterday.
Meghalaya food and civil supplies minister, Ampareen Lyngdoh said, “While the Planning Commission in 1993-94 had indicated the poverty rate of Meghalaya at 40.86%, in 2004-05 it was mentioned as 18.50%. This is an unrealistic projection.”
She said as per the survey conducted by the State Rural Department in 2002, there were 2,05,234 BPL families in the rural areas alone which comes to around 48.90% of the total rural households.
“It would therefore be disastrous to reduce the number of BPL families and the allocation of food-grains at this juncture where the prices of essential commodities are exorbitantly high. The Centre should enhance the allocation,” the minister said.
She said the availability of sugar of between January 2008 to September 2009 was just 38 per cent and urged the Centre to increase the stock allotted to the state.
“The shortfall in the requirement of rice is around 24 lakh MT, which has to be procured from the open market. The dependency on the open market is up to 95%,” Lyngdoh added.