KRI Managing Director Charon Mokhzani said that there was no poorest state in Malaysia, NST Online reported.

Speaking after a meeting with Perak Menteri Besar Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, he said although most of the households in Perak earned less than RM6,000 monthly, they had access to clean water, electricity, education and healthcare.

“Almost 100 per cent of Perakians have access to the main necessities.”

Perak State Industry, Investment and Corridor Development Committee Chairman Mohd Zahir Abdul Khalid said the state government was satisfied with the explanation given by Charon.

He said the state’s average income since the 2009-2014 period had increased by 52 per cent.

KRI, in its report titled “The State of Households II”, had placed Perak second after Kelantan on the average household income ranking, with 81.1 per cent of households earning below RM6,000 monthly.

In comparison, in Kuala Lumpur, 64.4 per cent of households earn more than RM6,000 per month.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan had also expressed his unhappiness over the report as the state government under Zambry had taken various measures to ensure Perak continued to achieve development.