what is poverty line

Poverty line refers to the cut off point in terms of per capita expenditure incurred by the people to satisfy basic needs. The people lying below this cut-off point are considered as poor. For example, if the per capita expenditure of Rs 300 per month is taken as a cutoff point, then those surviving on a monthly income of less than Rs 300 are considered as poor. According to the estimates, in 1999-2000, there were 260 million below poverty line.