The five southern states of Kerala, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka have a much higher monthly per capita consumption expenditure than the all-India average, as per data from the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023-24 released on Friday.
Among large states, Kerala's MPCE in rural households is Rs 6,611 and as high as Rs 7,834 in urban areas, compared to the national average of Rs 4,122 and Rs 6,996, respectively.
Tamil Nadu's MPCE in rural areas is Rs 5,872 and Rs 8,325 in urban, while Telangana's stood at Rs 5,675 and Rs 9,131 for the same categories.
The rural MPCE of Karnataka is Rs 5,068, and the urban is Rs 8,169. A rural household in Andhra Pradesh has an MPCE of Rs 6,107 and Rs 9,877 in urban areas.
Average urban MPCE for major states. Photo source: PIB
Average urban MPCE for major states. Photo source: PIB
Average rural MPCE for major states. Photo source: PIB
Average rural MPCE for major states. Photo source: PIB
Interestingly, per capita consumption in other prosperous states like Gujarat and Maharashtra is closer to the national average in both rural and urban households. The two western states are highly industrialised like their southern peers.
Whereas, populous northern states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan have lower per capita consumption expenditure than the national average. West Bengal too is below average in both rural and urban categories.
Overall Picture
Among all 28 states, the monthly per capita consumption expenditure is the highest in Sikkim with rural households spending Rs 9,377 and urban Rs 13,927. The lowest is Chhattisgarh with rural MPCE of Rs 2,739 and urban MPCE of Rs 4,927 the HCES 2024 has found.
The rural-urban difference in average MPCE among the states is the highest in Meghalaya (104%), followed by Jharkhand (83%) and Chhattisgarh (80%). This denotes high income inequality between households in rural and urban areas.
The average MPCE in nine out of 18 major states is higher than the all-India average in both rural and urban areas, the survey finds.
The Household Consumption Expenditure Survey is designed to gather data on household spending patterns for goods and services. This survey provides essential information to assess economic well-being trends and helps determine and update the basket of consumer goods and services, as well as the weights used to calculate the Consumer Price Index.
The data collected through HCES is also crucial for measuring poverty, inequality, and social exclusion. The Monthly Per Capita Expenditure (MPCE) derived from the survey serves as the key indicator for most analytical purposes.
The survey was conducted between August 2023 and July 2024.
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