Those living between 75 to 50 cents a day, did the best. The report says that this is not the case in the rest of Asia, specially East Asia. “In East Asia, all groups moved up equally. It is not that difficult,” said Ahmed. This clearly points to a need for a rethink on the way policies for the poor are designed and implemented on the ground.

So what is the problem in India? “It is a question of coverage and targetting. The most vulnerable are the SC/STs but also pockets in the general population where developmental efforts are not reaching,” he explained.

Social exclusion perpetuates poverty in India, and may be one of the main reasons behind this unique trend. In Uttar Pradesh, a recent study of Indian castes showed how a history of social disabilities may have persistent effects on an individual’s earnings. When caste was hidden, low-caste and high-caste students performed equally well on tests, but when caste was announced, low-caste groups performed less well by 23 percentage points. This was not because of lower self-confidence on the part of lower-caste students, but because low-caste children anticipated that when their caste was known, they would be treated prejudicially.

In Bangladesh, the situation is different. They are doing badly on reducing poverty: it has fallen only by one percentage point in the last decade or so. The report finds that natural disasters like floods take a heavy toll on Bangladesh’s poor. But out of the three groups, their ultra poor fared better, suggesting that the severity of poverty declined in the country. Herein lies a lesson for India’s policymakers.

... contd.