India's per capita income, as per the revised estimates released by the Central Statistical Organisation on May 31, 2006, has been estimated at Rs 23,222 annually at current prices during the year 2004-05, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.

In a written reply, Minister of State for Planning M V Rajasekharan said that as per the information available with the CSO, Delhi's annual per capita income is the third highest.

During the year 2004-05, Chandigarh has recorded highest per capita income of Rs 67,370 per annum followed by Pondicherry which has annual per capita income of Rs 56,034. Delhi's, per capita income has been estimated at Rs 53,976 annually during the year, he added.

In reply to a question on increase in BPL (below poverty line) people, Rajasekharan said that the Planning Commission estimates the incidence of poverty at national and state level from the large sample survey on household consumer expenditure conducted by the National Sample Survey Organisation at an interval of approximately five years according to the Expert Group Methodology (Lakdawala Committee on Estimation of Proportion and Number of Poor).

The latest available data from such surveys is from NSS 55th Round, which was conducted in 1999-2000. The next estimates of poverty will be based on the 61st round of NSSO, (July 2004 to June 2005), the results of which have not been published.

The minister further said the Planning Commission has adopted per capita consumption expenditure needed to attain a minimum amount of calorie intake out of food consumption along with a minimum amount of non-food expenditure in order to meet the requirements of clothing, shelter and transport as the criterion to determine the persons living below the poverty line.

The Planning Commission follows a uniform criterion for poverty across all the states and Union Territories, he added.