The 90 selected districts have the following characteristics:

• Poverty levels that are higher than the average for rural India (source: Planning Commission of India 2004-05)
• People belonging to socially excluded groups form a substantial proportion of the district's total population. (source: Census 2001 data on the population of three socially excluded groups - scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and Muslims - as a percentage of the total population)

To view the list of PACS districts at a glance download the PDF (link).