Lok Sabha Question No. 153 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-12-04
Subject: Rise in average Income of Citizens
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: Manickam Tagore B

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 153

TO BE ANSWERED ON DECEMBER 4, 2023

## RISE IN AVERAGE INCOME OF CITIZENS

## 153. SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B.:

## Will the Minister of FINANCE

Be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the average income of citizens of the country has risen  from Rs. 4 lakh per annum  to  Rs.13  lakh  per  annum  in  9  years  since  2014  onwards,  if  so,  the  details thereof;
- (b) whether it is also true that the number of those who have moved to the upper income group from the lower income group has also increased during the said period, if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether  this  was  because  of  robustness  across  sectors  and  a  rise  in  a  number  of employment opportunities; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR FINANCE (SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY)

(a): As per the National Account Statistics 2023, released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI),  India's  Per  Capita  Gross  National  Income  (GNI),  at Current Prices, increased from ₹88,678 in 2013-14 to ₹1,68,066 in 2021-22.

(b): The report 'National Multidimensional Poverty Index: A Progress Review 2023' by NITI Aayog  informs  that  a  record  13.5  crore  people  moved  out  of  multidimensional  poverty between 2015-16 and 2019-21. According to the Report,  India has registered  a  significant decline of 9.8 per cent in the number of India's multidimensionally poor, from 24.8 per cent in 2015-16 to 14.96 per cent in 2019-21.

(c)-(d): Between 2013-14 and 2022-23, the Real Gross Value Added (at 2011-12 prices) in the Agriculture, Industry and Services sectors registered a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 3.7 per cent, 5.4 per cent and 6.3 per cent, respectively, reflecting robust growth across sectors.

As reported in the latest annual PLFS, labour markets have witnessed strong recovery beyond pre-Covid levels in both urban and rural areas, with  the unemployment rate (UR) (persons age 15 years and above, as per usual status) falling from 5.8 per cent in 2018-19 to 3.2 per cent  in  2022-23.  The  fall  in  UR  is  accompanied  with  a  simultaneous  rise  in  labour  force participation  rate  (LFPR)  from  50.2  per  cent  in  2018-19  to  57.9  per  cent  in  2022-23  and worker population ratio (WPR) from 47.3 per cent in 2018-19 to 56.0 per cent in 2022-23. While  the  usual  status  has  a  long  reference  period  of  one  year,  the  current  weekly  status (CWS) is a stricter benchmark.

Besides, employment generation coupled with improving employability is the government's priority.  Accordingly,  the  Government  of  India  has  taken  various  steps  to  generate employment in the country. Some of the recent initiatives are as follows: -

- The Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana (ABRY) was launched with effect from 1 st October 2020 to incentivise employers to create new employment and restore lost employment during the  COVID-19  pandemic.  The  government  launched  the  Garib  Kalyan  Rojgar  Abhiyaan (GKRA) of 125 days on 20 th June 2020 to boost employment and livelihood opportunities for returnee  migrant  workers  and  similarly  affected  persons,  including  youth  in  rural  areas,  in 116 selected districts across 6 States.
- The Government has implemented a programme for skilling rural youth for entrepreneurship development  through  Rural  Self  Employment  and  Training  Institutes  (RSETIs)  and  Deen Dayal  Upadhyaya  Grameen  Kaushalya  Yojana  (DDU-GKY),  a  placement-linked  skill development  programme for  wage  employment.  Prime  Minister's  Employment  Generation Programme  (PMEGP)  is  a  major  credit-linked  Subsidy  programme  launched  by  the Government, aimed at generating self-employment opportunities through the establishment of microenterprises in the non-farm sector by helping traditional artisans and unemployed youth.
- Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) was launched to facilitate self-employment. Under PMMY, collateral-free loans, up to ₹l0 lakh, are extended to micro/small business enterprises and to individuals to enable them to set up or expand their business activities.
- The  government  has  been  implementing  the  Pradhan  Mantri  Rojgar  Protsahan  Yojana (PMRPY) since 2016 to incentivise employers to create new employment and bring informal workers  to  the  formal  workforce.  Under  the  scheme,  the  Government  is  paying  the Employer's full contribution, i.e., 12 per cent towards the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) and Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS) both (as admissible from time to time) for a period of three years to the new employees through Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).
- The  Ministry  of  Skill  Development  and  Entrepreneurship  (MSDE)  is  implementing  the National  Apprenticeship  Promotion  Scheme  (NAPS)  and  Pradhan  Mantri  Kaushal  Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) to enhance the employability of youth.
- Besides these initiatives, various flagship programmes of the Government, such as Make in India, Start-up India, Stand-up India, Digital India, and Housing for All, among others., are also oriented towards generating employment opportunities. The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes being implemented by the Government have the potential to create 60 lakh new jobs. All these initiatives are expected to collectively generate employment and boost output in the medium to long term through multiplier effects.

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