image to represent | Photo credit: The Hindu
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will officially declare Kerala free from extreme poverty at a function to be held at the Central Stadium in the capital on November 1, 2025. Actors Mohanlal, Mammootty and Kamal Haasan will be special guests at the event, to which all ministers as well as the Leader of the Opposition will be invited, the Minister for Local Government said at a press conference MB Raje in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
Mr. Rajesh said the program to eradicate extreme poverty started in 2021 as one of the first decisions of the current Left Democratic Front (LDF) government’s cabinet.
“According to the 2021 NITI Aayog study, Kerala is the lowest poverty state in the country with a poverty rate of 0.7% of the total population. The government has taken the lead in reaching out to this small population and meeting its needs. Kerala will become the first state in the country to achieve this milestone,” he said.
After ground surveys, 64,006 families across the state were identified as extremely poor based on factors such as food, health, livelihood and shelter. This list included many marginalized people whose names were not even in the electoral roll and who did not even have a ration card or an Aadhaar card. Micro-plans for immediate and long-term needs were prepared for each of the families. Necessary documents were provided to 21,263 persons who lacked them. Houses were provided to 3,913 families, plots to 1,338 families, house repairs of up to ₹2,000 each were done to 5,651 families, he said.
“Of the 64,006 families identified in the 2021 survey, 4,421 individuals (considered as one-member families in the survey) have died in the past years. Despite extensive checks, contacts and efforts, 261 families living as nomads could not be found during this process, because the vast majority of them are migrants, if they have returned to other states. There are 47 cases where it is necessary to provide assistance. the same family are listed in different local bodies. Micro-plans were prepared with family in mind. So apart from 4,729 families, the remaining 59,277 families have been lifted out of extreme poverty,” said Mr. Rajesh.
He said the state has reached a milestone by integrating all government assistance and services available to the public in various programs and also by coming up with special programs. The program’s social audit process is also being completed. Each recipient’s home is geo-tagged and data is collected.
“It is the result of a collective effort because all the local bodies, including those ruled by the opposition front, had a role to play in it,” the minister said.
General Education Minister V. Sivankutty, who will lead the organizing committee of the event on November 1, was part of the press conference.
Published – 22 Oct 2025 14:31 IST
