FM P Chidambaram may have claimed the UPA government's biggest achievement has been poverty alleviation, but speaking to CNBC-TV18, McKinsey Global Institute suggests more needs to be done. In its latest report - the consulting giant says the number of people deprived of access to basic services is much larger than the number of India's "officially poor".
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At a time when the UPA government has been claiming credit for lifting 140 million people above the poverty line - McKinsey research report says that 680 million people or 56 percent of India lives below the "empowerment line" which means they lack access to basic services such as education, healthcare, energy, sanitation and drinking water.
Shirish Sankhe, director, McKinsey says only 50 percent of government spends utilised for poverty eradication.
India needs atleast 75 percent effective utilisation of government spends.
Anu Madgavkar, senior fellow, McKinsey Global Institute says ruthless focus on implementation needed.
So, even as government struggles with fiscal consolidation in trying to maintain it's flagship schemes such as National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and right to food, the question now arises, would focus on infrastructure spending been a better option for poverty alleviation.
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