India’s economy has surpassed the 3 trillion US dollar mark, with current nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimates standing at approximately 4.14 trillion US dollars. This places India as the sixth-largest economy globally by nominal GDP. As of 2026, India’s nominal GDP per capita is approximately 2,813 US dollars per citizen, according to the latest figures from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). India is currently classified as a ‘‘Lower Middle Income’’ economy by the World Bank.
The Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) GDP per capita is in the range of 12,800 to 12,964 US dollars, which reflects actual local buying power and living standards. An Indian citizen earning a local salary of rupees 1,00,000 per month possesses the local standard of living and domestic purchasing power equivalent to someone earning roughly 5,000 US dollars per month in the United States.
At present, the Central Government baseline threshold is set at an annual household income of rupees 1,20,000 per year (rupees 10,000 per month), whereas some state governments have increased the baseline threshold to rupees 1,80,000 per year.
The Tendulkar Committee Baseline and the Rangarajan Committee Baseline computed the daily minimum threshold applicable in the rural and urban areas of India. We urgently need to constitute a fresh committee to revisit and revise the baseline daily threshold in rural and urban areas of India. We need to factor in all the present ground realities and come up with realistic and reasonable figures. The baseline minimum threshold per year will vary from state to state and from city to city across the country. Therefore, to categorise a person as being below the BPL threshold, we need to take into account the actual cost of living with respect to each state and location of permanent residence.
In today’s India, a person having permanent residence in New Delhi needs a minimum annual income of rupees 6 to 7 lakhs, and anything below this shall qualify for BPL category status. Even in our own State of Goa, the minimum baseline threshold must be revised to rupees 8 lakhs per year, and anyone earning below this figure shall be eligible for all welfare schemes of the State and Central governments.
Finally, the topmost bureaucracy should prevail upon the elected Members of Parliament and the state legislatures to explain the true ground situation prevailing in each and every state of the country and come up with a just solution beneficial to the citizens.
PAUL PEREIRA, Utorda
