Dileep V Kumar, Thiruvananthapuram, September 15

The Kerala government has formed a four-member committee to implement one of its flagship programmes – the eradication of extreme poverty – in a time-bound manner. 

The committee headed by the vice chairperson of the State Planning Board has been asked to look at the challenges involved in implementing the micro plan and to ascertain which families can be brought out of poverty in what time frame. Earlier, it was identified, through a survey, that 63,966 families in the state are living in extreme poverty.

“The committee has been asked to submit a report within three weeks to the government. A micro plan to eradicate extreme poverty was released in July. The families identified are to be uplifted within the timelines and through projects specified in the micro plans. The committee’s task is to ensure that the intended outcomes are achieved in a time-bound manner,” said an official of the Local Self Government Department (LSGD).

The committee will look at the challenges involved in ascertaining which families can be brought out of poverty and in what time frame. It will also project the number of families to be supported each year based on the assessment of the data on the nature of extreme poverty.

Other members of the committee are the chief secretary, finance secretary, and LSGD secretary, who is also the convener. The committee will operate from the office of the principal director of LSGD.

It was in July that the micro plan to eradicate extreme poverty got released. It highlighted that the government has set a target of five years to eradicate extreme poverty. The main parameters to identify extreme poverty are lack of food, safe housing, basic income, and health. According to the LSGD, the families will get uplifted from extreme poverty through various programmes/interventions chalked out under an immediate care plan, intermediate plan, and long-term comprehensive plan.

The survey that started in July 2021 was completed in March 2022.

The district-wise data of families living in extreme poverty are:

Thiruvananthapuram – 7278

Kollam – 4461

Pathanamthitta – 2579

Idukki – 2665

Kottayam – 1071

Alappuzha – 3613

Ernakulam – 5650

Thrissur – 5013

Palakkad – 6443

Malappuram – 8553

Kozhikode – 6773

Wayanad – 2931

Kannur – 4208

Kasargod – 2768