As the pandemic and the eventual lockdowns wreaked havoc on the economy and livelihoods, around 23 crore Indians have been pushed into poverty during the past one year, showed a report by Azim Premji University.
It said that the rural poverty rate increased by 15 percentage points and the urban poverty rate was up nearly 20 points.
"The number of individuals who lie below the national minimum wage threshold (Rs 375 per day as recommended by the Anoop Satpathy committee) increased by 230 million during the pandemic," said the report titled 'State of Working India 2021: One Year of Covid-19'.
It noted that though incomes fell across the board, the pandemic has taken a far heavier toll on poorer households. In April and May, the poorest 20 per cent of households lost their entire incomes.