Starvation line in Turkey is US$600 per month according to Türk-İş 2011-02-25 16:47:37 ANKARA (DİHA) - The monthly starvation line for a family of four in Turkey is 890 Turkish Lira (TL) or US$600, while the poverty line is 2,897 TL or US$1,900, reported Türk-İş, the largest workers' union confederation in Turkey. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute's (TUIK) latest report, the monthly starvation line for a family of four in Turkey is 287 Turkish Lira (TL) or US$185, while the poverty line is 825 TL or US$550. Even though the figures of TUIK are very low, there are actually 12,751,000 people living below the poverty line in Turkey. Still, the minimum expenses for a family of four increased by 71 TL while minimum food expenses increased 22 TL this year. Regarding minimum wage increases by 30 TL, said Türk-İş, the rise in wages can absorb only two or three of monthly, household expenses. (gü/bk)