Food Minister Pralhad Joshi told the Lok Sabha on Wednesday that foodgrain supply to Kerala under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) will stay the same. This comes after Kerala's state government declared it free from extreme poverty. Mr. Joshi said, "Extreme poverty is not any criterion for identification of eligible households in the AAY guidelines, no change in the supply of foodgrains to Kerala is envisaged for the present." Under the National Food Security Act, AAY households get 35 kg of foodgrains each month. Priority households receive 5 kg per person monthly. The Centre uses the National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) to measure poverty levels. A NITI Aayog report, 'National Multidimensional Poverty Index: A Progress Review 2023,' showed India's multidimensional poverty dropped from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23. This means 24.8 crore people escaped poverty. In Kerala, multidimensional poverty fell from 0.7% to 0.55% between 2015-16 and 2019-21, helping about 53,239 people rise above poverty. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan declared the state free from extreme poverty on November 1 during a special assembly session.