The Central government is going ahead with a seven-year-old census on below poverty line (BPL) population as the base for doling out benefits to rural poor. In fact, the UPA government has given a major thrust to rural development and nearly Rs 9,000 cr will be earmarked every year for implementing the employment guarantee scheme for the rural poor in 150 most backward districts of the country. If the scheme is extended to all 600 districts in the country, the cost will rise to Rs 36,000 cr per year. Sources in the rural development ministry have however claimed that there would have been a lot of changes in the list of beneficiaries, had the government used 2002 BPL census.