A new study by the University of Peradeniya has revealed that around 9.6 million Sri Lankans live below the poverty line, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
The Daily FT quoted Professor Wasantha Athukorala of the University’s Department of Economics and Statistics as saying that 42 per cent of Sri Lanka’s estimated 21 million people were suffering from destitution in the wake of the economic crisis.
According to the study, in 2019 nearly three million people lived below the poverty line but the number has shot up to 9.6 million in October 2022.
