Which among the following in India is the Nodal agency for estimation of poverty at the National and State level?

The answer is D, the Planning Commission. It was the nodal body for poverty estimation. It used NSSO consumption expenditure surveys to compute poverty lines and head-count ratios, first under the Lakdawala method (1993) and then the Tendulkar method (2009). The Rangarajan Committee, constituted by the Planning Commission, revised the poverty line upward in its 2014 report.

Why the others are wrong:

• Finance Commission (A): Under Article 280 it recommends the devolution of taxes and grants between the Centre and the states every five years. It does not measure poverty.
• Rural Ministry (B): The Ministry of Rural Development runs MGNREGA and PMAY-G and uses poverty data, but it does not estimate poverty.
• Home Ministry (C): It handles internal security, police and central laws. It has no role in poverty measurement.

Core concept: poverty line and head-count ratio. Mains angle: GS-2 and GS-3 questions on targeting welfare schemes and the debate over poverty line methodology.

Current position: the Planning Commission was replaced by NITI Aayog in January 2015, so the institution has changed. The answer is correct for the 2014 exam.

Trap: candidates pick the Finance Commission because it is a constitutional body dealing with money and states, but its job is devolution, not measurement.