CM Vijayan’s Dharmadam declared Kerala’s first extreme poverty-free constituency

Dharmadam constituency in Kannur, represented by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, was declared the state’s first extreme poverty-free constituency on Sunday, marking a major milestone in the state’s ongoing poverty eradication programme. The announcement was made at a function in Pinarayi village, where officials highlighted the significant efforts undertaken over the past three years to identify and address extreme poverty at the grassroots level.

The campaign to eradicate extreme poverty in Kerala began three years ago with the identification of 64,002 families across the state who lacked basic requirements such as adequate food, access to healthcare, a stable income, and secure housing. These indicators were used to assess the living conditions of families and to prepare micro-level action plans for their upliftment through coordinated efforts by various government departments.

Dharmadam constituency had 196 families classified as extremely poor, and targeted interventions ensured food security for 19 families while 139 families received healthcare services. The initiative was implemented with the support of local self-governing bodies, which played a critical role in surveying and identifying affected households using yardsticks developed by the Kerala Institute of Local Administration.

The eradication of extreme poverty has been one of the flagship missions of the second term of the CPI(M)-led government in Kerala, which has consistently performed well in national human development indices. Despite its high standing, isolated pockets of extreme poverty were found.

As of now, 44,000 of the initially identified families have been lifted out of extreme poverty, and the remaining families are expected to achieve a similar status by 1 November 2025. Kerala had previously recorded the lowest poverty rate in India, with only 0.71% under the multidimensional poverty index released by NITI Aayog in 2021.