The correct answer is 21.9%. Explanation & Key Takeaways: • Tendulkar Committee: • The expert group constituted by the Planning Commission in 2005 and, chaired by Suresh Tendulkar, was constituted to review methodology for poverty estimation. • According to the commission, in 2011-12 for rural areas, the national poverty line by using the Tendulkar methodology is estimated at Rs 816 per capita per month in villages and Rs 1,000 per capita per month in cities. • The percentage of persons below the poverty line in 2011-12 has been estimated at 25.7% in rural areas, 13.7% in urban areas and 21.9% for the country as a whole, a commission's press statement said. • The percentage of persons below the poverty line in 2004-05 was 41.8% in rural areas, 25.7% in cities, and 37.2% in the country as a whole. • In actual terms, there were 26.93 crore people below the poverty line in 2011-12 as compared to 40,71 crore in 2004-05. • This ratio for 2011-12 is based on the methodology suggested by the Suresh Tendulkar committee which factors in money spent on health and education besides calorie intake to fix a poverty line.