In Asia and the Pacific extreme income poverty remains widespread. This analysis of trends and highlighted good practices provides useful input into regional and global dialogues.

Question raised in Lok Sabha on Rural Development and Poverty Alleviation Projects, 30/03/2017.

Across the world 663 million people still do not have access to water; the vast majority of them - over half a billion - live in rural areas.

Family farming remains the predominant form of agriculture in Asia and the Pacific. There are more than 570 million farms in the world of which over 500 million are family-owned. They are responsible for at least 56 percent of agricultural production.

According to the Delhi Government, the economy of the national Capital is booming with the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) estimated to grow at 12.76 per cent in 2016-17. It claimed that the advance estimate of Delhi at current prices during 2016-17 is likely to attain level of Rs 6,22,385 crore. However, in terms of constant prices, which does not take inflation into account, the economy growth rate saw a decline from 8.82 per cent in 2015-16 to 8.26 per cent in 2016-17 as per advance estimates

It is widely acknowledged that top-down support is essential for bottom-up participatory projects to be effectively implemented at scale. However, which level of government, national or sub-national, should be given the responsibility to implement such projects is an open question, with wide variations in practice.

Economic Survey is one of the budget documents which indicates the important economic activities and achievements of the Government. The salient features of the State of the economy of Himachal Pradesh during 2016-17 are presented in Part-I, and statistical tables on various subjects are given in Part-II.

The 2017 Union Budget was broadly focused on 10 issues — farming sector, rural population, youth, poor and health care for the underprivileged, infrastructure, financial sector for stronger institutions, speedy accountability, public services, prudent fiscal management and tax administration for the honest.