The problem in measuring the poverty line in India is :

It groups all the poor together and does not differentiate between the very poor and the other poor.

The correct answer is option (4) : It groups all the poor together and does not differentiate between the very poor and the other poor.

There are many ways of measuring poverty. One way is to determine it by the monetary value (per capita expenditure) of the minimum calorie intake that was estimated at 2,400 calories for a rural person and 2,100 for a person in the urban area. Based on this, in 2011-12, the poverty line was defined for rural areas as consumption worth Rs 816 per person a month and for urban areas it was Rs 1,000.

Economists state that a major problem with this mechanism is that it groups all the poor together and does not differentiate between the very poor and the other poor. Also this mechanism takes into account expenditure on food and a few select items as proxy for income, economists question its basis. This mechanism is helpful in identifying the poor as a group to be taken care of by the government, but it would be difficult to identify who among the poor need help the most.

****** Old NCERT Book- Poverty