Despite facing financial constraints, Kerala has been able to invest in welfare schemes and targeted programmes.
Come November 2025, Kerala is preparing to officially declare itself as the first Indian state to eradicate extreme poverty.
This milestone of 100 per cent extreme poverty alleviation follows the launch of the state's comprehensive Extreme Poverty Eradication Programme (EPEP) in 2021.
M B Rajesh, Kerala's minister for local self-governments, told Business Standard that the EPEP has so far succeeded in uplifting 93 per cent of the 64,006 families identified as extremely poor.
"The Athidardrya Nirmarjana Project, or EPEP, was started to uplift the population who are outside the support system of the government. In the initial phase, we identified the population for shortlisting beneficiaries. The final shortlisting gave us 64,006 families for whom we had to plan a comprehensive project," Rajesh said.
According to think-tank NITI Aayog's National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) 2023, Kerala tops the list of states with the lowest multidimensional poverty headcount ratio at just 0.55 per cent.
Other leading states include Goa (0.84 per cent), Tamil Nadu (2.20 per cent), Sikkim (2.60 per cent), and Punjab (4.75 per cent).
What's different in Kerala's EPEP?
Kerala's approach to eradicating extreme poverty stands out for its adoption of the MPI framework, which incorporates factors such as food, shelter, health, and income that can help sustainable family growth in the long term.
"Rather than relying on abstract poverty lines, the government deployed local-level surveys through Kudumbashree and panchayats to identify households in extreme deprivation," said Yadul Krishna, a policy economist.
Kudumbashree, Kerala's flagship programme for poverty eradication and women's empowerment, operates as a community network with a three-tier structure: Neighbourhood groups, area development societies, and community development societies.
Led by local governments and supported by Kudumbashree, ASHA and Anganwadi workers, as well as various community organisations, the EPEP's methodology involved over 1.4 million people to identify the most marginalised, who were previously invisible to existing systems.
Each family's needs were assessed individually, and tailored micro-plans were developed by the Local Self Government Department.
"The programme successfully uplifted 47 per cent of the identified families by November 2023.
This figure increased to 70 per cent in 2024, and as of now, we have reached 93 per cent of the total families recognised. By November, we aim to achieve 100 per cent coverage, paving the way for the official declaration," the minister said.
Individualised micro-plans are prepared based on the deprivation factors of the family, which help the relevant departments to act swiftly.
Most of the identified families fell under the category of homeless or landless-homeless, which were highlighted as the priority.
Indicators such as food, clothing, shelter, and health have been kept as first priorities, followed by income generation, which was addressed through channelling financial aid to those eligible for it, as well as creating employability through programmes such as Ujjeevanam, a 100-day special livelihood campaign under Kudumbashree.
'Extreme poverty' eradicated?
Despite facing financial constraints, Kerala has been able to invest in welfare schemes and targeted programmes. The minister attributes this to continued and collective effort.
"Instead of limiting ourselves to broad assumptions, we made it a priority to identify, recognise, and take targeted action for those in need. We ensured the active involvement of departments ranging from health to electricity to support families in the most holistic way possible," the minister said.
Along with significant budget allocations, the government has pooled funds under corporate social responsibility and land donation drives to support the EPEP, he added.
However, N C Saxena, former secretary of the Union rural development ministry and a member of the erstwhile Planning Commission, said Kerala does have a very low poverty rate according to central government reports, but the claim of eradicating 'extreme poverty' depends on the benchmark used.
"The scale chosen to define poverty can significantly influence such claims," Saxena said.
According to him, the real challenge is to sustain this achievement.
"Low or no income can quickly alter people's living conditions, making unemployment a critical factor. It is important for the state to involve independent agencies, non-governmental organisations, or academic practitioners to conduct thorough studies of such initiatives. An external perspective can help identify potential gaps and provide valuable insights for improving future schemes and projects," he said.
The way forward
Kerala aims to declare the official eradication of extreme poverty within the next four months.
After the official announcement of this milestone, focus will likely shift to evaluating the effectiveness and sustainability of the initiative.
"First, the state needs a serious expansion of its cooperative and public-sector economy. Kerala Bank, Kerala Financial Corporation, and sectoral cooperatives need capital and autonomy, especially in agro-processing, bio-pharma, and eldercare. There's too much potential here that's being left to private players. Secondly, Kerala needs to structurally reform employment," Krishna said.
He added that the state's model is built on dignity, solidarity, and ecological responsibility.
"If Kerala sticks to that vision, while modernising delivery, it might just offer a future that India desperately needs too," he added.
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff
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