§ Tom BrakeTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of poverty levels within the Indian state of Jharkhand. [152411]
Mr. Gareth ThomasThe latest official figures on poverty that relate to the State of Jharkhand pertain to the year 1999–2000 (National Human Development Report 2001); at this time Jharkhand was part of the state of Bihar. The percentage of people under the official poverty line was 42.6 per cent. out of the total population of 99.9 million. DFID has not undertaken an independent poverty assessment in the State of Jharkhand.