Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 27 (IANS): Former Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly Ramesh Chennithala on Saturday gave former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy the credit for Kerala featuring as the least poor state in the country.

Chennithala's statement came after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan promptly shared NITI Aayog's report in his twitter handle.

Vijayan's twitter post read: "As per NITI Aayog's Multi Dimensional Poverty Index, Kerala has the lowest percentage of population who are poor, 0.71%. Our unwavering commitment towards social welfare is reflected in this achievement, which will be a huge boost to our efforts to eradicate extreme poverty,".

Countering him, Chennithala pointed out that the report was based on the Aayog's study conducted in 2015-16 and the credit for this should go to Chandy, who was at the helm of affairs then.

"The programmes and policies of the then Chandy government had won numerous accolades, even when the finances were poor, the state government ensured that people of the state got everything they wanted. But now all are wondering if the things are the same in our state and when the 2020-21 NITI Aayog report comes out, it's doubtful, if Kerala can retain the number one spot," wrote Chennithala.

Chandy ruled the state from 2011-16, before handing over the reins to Vijayan, who in 2021 May won a second successive term.