UPPSC 2020 Prelims Q129: Human Development Report 1997 introduced the concept of

Q: What is the answer to UPPSC 2020 Prelims Q129?

C. Correct — C, 2010. The UNDP's Human Development Report introduced the Human Poverty Index (HPI) in 1997. In 2010 the HDR replaced it with the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), developed by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) with UNDP support using the Alkire-Foster method. The MPI moved from the HPI's country-average deprivation measure to a household-level count of overlapping deprivations across three dimensions — health, education and standard of living (ten indicators) — identifying who is poor and how many deprivations they suffer at once. So 2010 is the changeover year.

UPPSC 2020 Prelims GS Paper-I · Question 129 of 150

Verified against the official question paper. Answer as per the official UPPSC answer key.

Human Development Report 1997 introduced the concept of Human Poverty Index (HPI) but Human Development Report replaced it with Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) in the year

(a)1999
(b)2005
(c)2010
(d)2015

Answer

Why

Correct — C, 2010. The UNDP's Human Development Report introduced the Human Poverty Index (HPI) in 1997. In 2010 the HDR replaced it with the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), developed by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) with UNDP support using the Alkire-Foster method. The MPI moved from the HPI's country-average deprivation measure to a household-level count of overlapping deprivations across three dimensions — health, education and standard of living (ten indicators) — identifying who is poor and how many deprivations they suffer at once. So 2010 is the changeover year.

Why the others are wrong

(a)1999 — Wrong — the HPI was still in use in 1999; the MPI did not exist yet. 1999 is only two years after HPI's 1997 launch.
(b)2005 — Wrong — no index change occurred in 2005; the HPI remained the HDR's poverty measure until 2010.
(d)2015 — Wrong — 2015 is the year the Sustainable Development Goals (Agenda 2030) were adopted, not the year MPI replaced HPI; the MPI had already been in the HDR since 2010.

Concept

The UNDP's Human Development Report has tracked poverty beyond income. The Human Poverty Index (HPI, 1997) measured average deprivations in longevity, knowledge and a decent standard of living at the country level. In 2010 it was superseded by the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), built by OPHI and UNDP on the Alkire-Foster method, which measures acute poverty at the household level across health, education and living-standard indicators.

Fix the two dates: HPI = 1997 (given in the question), MPI = 2010 (the answer). The distractors are built from other 'famous' years — 2015 (SDGs) is the strongest trap. Recall that the MPI is a household-level, overlapping-deprivations count, which is why it replaced the older country-average HPI.

Key facts

HPI introduced in the Human Development Report 1997
MPI introduced in the Human Development Report 2010, replacing the HPI
MPI built by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) with UNDP, using the Alkire-Foster method
MPI covers three dimensions — health, education, standard of living — via ten indicators, measured at the household level

Study next

Human Poverty Index (HPI) vs Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)Alkire-Foster method and the ten MPI indicatorsHuman Development Index (HDI) and Inequality-adjusted HDI (IHDI)India's National MPI (NITI Aayog) and the global MPIAmartya Sen's capability approach and Mahbub ul Haq's human development idea

Common traps

Confusing the MPI changeover year (2010) with 2015 (SDGs adoption)
Mixing up HPI (country-average) with MPI (household-level, overlapping deprivations)

UPPSC/UPSC ask the launch years (HPI 1997, MPI 2010), the developing agency (OPHI + UNDP), and the MPI's dimensions/indicators, often as recall or as a statements-based item.

Related PYQs

UPSC_2012_GS1_Q322012Open & attempt →

The Multi-dimensional Poverty Index developed by Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative with UNDP support covers which of the following? 1. Deprivation of education, health, assets and services at household level 2. Purchasing power parity at national level 3. Extent of budget deficit and GDP growth rate at national level Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer(a) 1 only

Same concept — confirms the MPI is an OPHI-UNDP measure of household-level deprivation in health, education and living standards, not a macro (PPP/GDP/deficit) measure.

UPSC_1998_GS1_Q431998Open & attempt →

Human Poverty Index was introduced in the Human Development Report of the year

(a) 1994
(b) 1995
(c) 1996
(d) 1997

Answer(d) 1997

Same concept — pins the HPI's launch year (1997), the very index that Q129 says the MPI replaced in 2010.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) was developed by the UNDP together with
- (a)The World Bank
- (b)The Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI)
- (c)The International Monetary Fund
- (d)The OECD
Answer(b) OPHI — using the Alkire-Foster method.
practice — not a real PYQ
The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) measures deprivation across which three dimensions?
- (a)Income, employment and savings
- (b)Health, education and standard of living
- (c)Health, income and inequality
- (d)Education, gender and environment
Answer(b) Health, education and standard of living — captured through ten indicators.