A Simple Poverty Scorecard for India

Mark Schreiner

(July 2006)

This paper uses data from a national survey to construct an easy-to-use scorecard that estimates the likelihood that a household in India has expenditure below a given poverty line. The scorecard uses 10 simple indicators that field workers can quickly collect and verify. Poverty scores can be computed on paper in less than 5 minutes. The scorecard’s accuracy, as well as sample-size formulas, are reported for a range of poverty lines. Poverty scoring is a practical way for pro-poor programs in India to monitor poverty rates, track changes in poverty rates over time, and target services.