70% Haryana in BPL category, 75L added in 2 yrs

Over two-thirds of Haryana’s population is living below the poverty line (BPL), suggests data available with Aadhaar-enabled Public Distribution System of the state Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department.

As many as 1.98 crore (70 per cent) people figure in the BPL bracket out of an estimated 2.8 crore state population.

What is even more startling is that around 75 lakh people have been added to the category in the past two years. In December 2022, the department had listed nearly 1.24 crore people — 44 per cent of the total population — under the category. Their numbers have risen by nearly 26 per cent over the past two years.

The numbers bely the Haryana Government’s claim of ushering in a rapid pace of development in the state.

Expressing surprise at the figures, Rajesh Nagar, Minister for Civil Supplies, says: “The department is not directly involved in the collection of data, which is provided by the Citizen Resources Information Department (CRID). It is surprising that the number of beneficiaries has risen by 75 lakh in two years. I will take up the matter with the chief minister to flag any possible anomalies in the compilation of data.”

The state offers certain benefits to those on the list, including 5 kg grain (wheat/bajra) per person free of cost, besides two litres of mustard oil at subsidised Rs 40 and 1 kg sugar at Rs 13.5 per BPL card every month.

Various departments run other schemes catering to the BPL families. CM Nayab Singh Saini had recently announced 100 square yard plots for such families living in the rural areas. The state distributes an estimated 10 lakh quintals of grain free of cost, apart from mustard oil and sugar at concessional rates, every month.

Department officials as well as ration depot holders in the urban and rural areas, too, are surprised at the growing numbers. “It is remarkable that 75 lakh people have been added to the list. Instead of working towards increasing per capita income and improving the living conditions of the poor, the focus seems to be on getting more people registered under the category so that they can to draw benefits,” said an official.

Faridabad district tops the list with around 14.29 lakh beneficiaries, followed by Hisar (13.55 lakh) and Mewat (13.49 lakh). Panchkula figures at the bottom with 3.65 lakh BPL population.

Officials further attribute the spike to a relatively easy registration process. The BPL cards are issued based on the Parivar Pehchan Patras (PPP) issued by CRID. A PPP holder is required to provide self-certification of the household income, which is capped by the state at Rs 1.80 lakh per year per family for BPL cards. “This income is never certified or cross-checked at the official level,” says a depot holder in Hisar. The income cap was Rs 1.25 lakh per family in 2022.