Over 56 Million Indians Pushed Into Poverty Due To COVID-19 In 2020: World Bank Report

As the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, it upended numerous lives, brought industries to a near-standstill, and disrupted global economic activities.

The latest report by the World Bank has suggested that 71 million people across the globe may have been pushed into extreme poverty due to the pandemic in 2020. And, out of these, nearly 79% of people were from India.

The report titled "Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2022" stated that the pandemic proved to be a major setback to global poverty. It led to a rise in the global extreme poverty rate, which increased from 8.4 per cent in 2019 to 9.3 per cent in 2020.

By the end of 2020, 71 million people plunged into extreme poverty, resulting in a global total of over 700 million impoverished people.

According to World Bank, the most populous countries were the biggest contributor to the increase in global poverty. It stated that India accounted for 56 million of the estimated 71 million increase in the number of poverty-stricken people.

However, it highlighted that China, despite being the most populated country, did not contribute much to the global poverty increase in 2020. The country experienced a "moderate economic shock in 2020".

On the other hand, the report said India witnessed a "pronounced economic contraction" in 2020.

The report used data from the Consumer Pyramids Household Survey (CPHS), conducted by a private data company, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy.

The CPHS data was used to measure poverty, as the Indian government has not released official data on poverty since 2011. "Given the country's size and importance for global and regional poverty estimates, the CPHS data help fill an important gap," the report stated.

The report has projected that poverty reduction will be further hindered in 2022 as the war in Ukraine, the growth slowdown in China, and inflating food and energy prices have taken a toll on global growth.