Gujarat model? Half of Indian states' households have higher purchasing power

By Rajiv Shah

In what many may consider as another “expose” of the Gujarat development model sought to be sold across the country during the Lok Sabha elections, the latest National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) report, “Level and Pattern of Consumer Expenditure, 2011-12”, released in February 2014, has revealed that the average spending capacity of Gujarat households, as reflected in monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE), is lower than 11 out of 20 major states in the rural areas and nine out of 20 major states in the urban areas.

The figures suggest that at the MPCE of Rs 1,536, spending capacity of Gujarat’s rural households is lower than Andhra Pradesh (Rs 1,754), Haryana (Rs 2,176), Himachal Pradesh (Rs 2,034), Jammu & Kashmir (Rs 1,743), Karnataka (Rs 1,561), Kerala (2,669), Maharashtra (Rs 1,619), Punjab (Rs 2,345), Rajasthan (Rs 1,598), Tamil Nadu (Rs 1,693), and Uttarakhand (Rs 1,726). The all-India average for the rural areas, on account of even lower spending capacity in poorer states, is lower than Gujarat’s – Rs 1,430.
As for the urban areas, things are not quite different, with Gujarat ranking at No 10th with the households’ average spending capacity, reflected in MPCE, being Rs 2581. This is less than that of Andhra Pradesh (Rs 2,685), Haryana (3,817), Himachal Pradesh (Rs 3,259), Karnataka (Rs 3,026), Kerala (Rs 3,408), Maharashtra (Rs 3,189), Punjab (Rs 2,794), Tamil Nadu (Rs 2,622) and West Bengal (Rs 2,591). As for the all-India average, despite lower purchasing power in the poorer states, the urban MPCE higher than Gujarat’s -- Rs 2,630.

What is particularly appalling is that, with lower purchasing power, Gujarat’s households are forced to spend a higher percentage of their earnings on foodgrains. Thus, the figures show that, in rural Gujarat, on an average, 55 per cent of the spending go into foodgrains consumption, which means that they are forced to spend considerably less on non-foodgrains, including education, health, consumer durables, and entertainment.
The states whose households spend higher percentage than Gujarat in the rural areas on foodgrains, significantly, are mainly five poorer states -- Assam (61 per cent), Bihar (59 per cent), Jharkhand (58 per cent), Odisha (57 per cent), and West Bengal (58 per cent). The all-India average percentage of spending on foodgrains is 53 per cent – lower than Gujarat’s.
Things are, in fact, worse in urban areas, whose Gujarat households on an average spend 45 per cent of their spending on foodgrains. The states whose urban area households spend more than Gujarat are just three -- Assam (48 per cent), Bihar (51 per cent), and Jharkhand (47 per cent), with Rajasthan and Odisha equaling Gujarat (45 per cent). The all-India average on this score is 43 per cent, less than that of Gujarat.
Coming to the cereals – which are the main source of nutrition in the absence of non-vegetarian food – the data show that Gujarat’s just eight per cent of the rural spending go into expenditure on cereals, as against the all-India average of 11 per cent. The situation is not very different for the urban areas, where just six per cent of the spending goes in for cereals, as against the all-India average of seven per cent.

In the absence of non-vegetarian food, on which Gujarat’s households just spend about Rs 24 per capita in rural areas and Rs 30 in urban areas (as against the all-India average of Rs 68 and 96 respectively), they are forced to spend a higher sum on milk and milk products – Rs 196 in rural areas (all-India average Rs 115) and Rs 267 in urban areas (all-India average Rs 184). As for fruits and vegetables, the spending is nearer to the all-India average.
Even more interesting is the fact that, NSSO data suggest, Gujarat’s rural as well as urban population is forced to spend a higher amount on cheaper cereals. To quote from the report, in the country as a whole, “rice and wheat together accounted for as much as 97 per cent of all cereal consumption in urban areas, and for 94 per cent in rural areas.”
To quote, “In rural India, the share of cereals other than rice and wheat was 3 per cent or less in all major States except Gujarat (32 per cent), Karnataka (27 per cent), Maharashtra (20 per cent), Rajasthan (19 per cent), and Madhya Pradesh (6 per cent). In urban India cereals other than rice and wheat accounted for 3 per cent or less of total cereal consumption in all but 3 major States – Karnataka (18 per cent), Gujarat (9 per cent) and Maharashtra (8 per cent).”

Comments

Whither space for the marginalised in Kerala's privately-driven townships after landslides?

By Ipshita Basu, Sudheesh R.C. In the early hours of July 30 2024, a landslide in the Wayanad district of Kerala state, India, killed 400 people. The Punjirimattom, Mundakkai, Vellarimala and Chooralmala villages in the Western Ghats mountain range turned into a dystopian rubble of uprooted trees and debris.

Election bells ringing in Nepal: Can ousted premier Oli return to power?

By Nava Thakuria* Nepal is preparing for a national election necessitated by the collapse of KP Sharma Oli’s government at the height of a Gen Z rebellion (youth uprising) in September 2025. The polls are scheduled for 5 March. The Himalayan nation last conducted a general election in 2022, with the next polls originally due in 2027. However, following the dissolution of Nepal’s lower house of Parliament last year by President Ram Chandra Poudel, the electoral process began under the patronage of an interim government installed on 12 September under the leadership of retired Supreme Court judge Sushila Karki. The Hindu-majority nation of over 29 million people will witness more than 3,400 electoral candidates, including 390 women, representing 68 political parties as well as independents, vying for 165 seats in the 275-member House of Representatives.

Jayanthi Natarajan "never stood by tribals' rights" in MNC Vedanta's move to mine Niyamigiri Hills in Odisha

By A Representative The Odisha Chapter of the Campaign for Survival and Dignity (CSD), which played a vital role in the struggle for the enactment of historic Forest Rights Act, 2006 has blamed former Union environment minister Jaynaynthi Natarjan for failing to play any vital role to defend the tribals' rights in the forest areas during her tenure under the former UPA government. Countering her recent statement that she rejected environmental clearance to Vendanta, the top UK-based NMC, despite tremendous pressure from her colleagues in Cabinet and huge criticism from industry, and the claim that her decision was “upheld by the Supreme Court”, the CSD said this is simply not true, and actually she "disrespected" FRA.

Gig workers hold online strike on republic day; nationwide protests planned on February 3

By A Representative Gig and platform service workers across the country observed a nationwide online strike on Republic Day, responding to a call given by the Gig & Platform Service Workers Union (GIPSWU) to protest what it described as exploitation, insecurity and denial of basic worker rights in the platform economy. The union said women gig workers led the January 26 action by switching off their work apps as a mark of protest.

'Condonation of war crimes against women and children’: IPSN on Trump’s Gaza Board

By A Representative The India-Palestine Solidarity Network (IPSN) has strongly condemned the announcement of a proposed “Board of Peace” for Gaza and Palestine by former US President Donald J. Trump, calling it an initiative that “condones war crimes against children and women” and “rubs salt in Palestinian wounds.”

With infant mortality rate of 5, better than US, guarantee to live is 'alive' in Kerala

By Nabil Abdul Majeed, Nitheesh Narayanan In 1945, two years prior to India's independence, the current Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, was born into a working-class family in northern Kerala. He was his mother’s fourteenth child; of the thirteen siblings born before him, only two survived. His mother was an agricultural labourer and his father a toddy tapper. They belonged to a downtrodden caste, deemed untouchable under the Indian caste system.

Stands 'exposed': Cavalier attitude towards rushed construction of Char Dham project

By Bharat Dogra* The nation heaved a big sigh of relief when the 41 workers trapped in the under-construction Silkyara-Barkot tunnel (Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand) were finally rescued on November 28 after a 17-day rescue effort. All those involved in the rescue effort deserve a big thanks of the entire country. The government deserves appreciation for providing all-round support.

MGNREGA: How caste and power hollowed out India’s largest welfare law

By Sudhir Katiyar, Mallica Patel* The sudden dismantling of MGNREGA once again exposes the limits of progressive legislation in the absence of transformation of a casteist, semi-feudal rural society. Over two days in the winter session, the Modi government dismantled one of the most progressive legislations of the UPA regime—the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

MGNREGA’s limits and the case for a new rural employment framework

By Dr Jayant Kumar* Rural employment programmes have played a pivotal role in shaping India’s socio-economic landscape . Beyond providing income security to vulnerable households, they have contributed to asset creation, village development, and social stability. However, persistent challenges—such as seasonal unemployment, income volatility, administrative inefficiencies, and corruption—have limited the transformative potential of earlier schemes.

Search This Blog