Skip to main content

Data miracle?: Rural Gujarat "improves" its position in govt's "fresh" survey results

 
A new set of data of the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011 has contradicted the income data released by it previously. They surprisingly go to suggest that Gujarat’s rural story may not as grim as it seemed. While the earlier data still remain on the SECC site (click HERE), showing that just about 5.19 per cent of households have highest earning members earning more than Rs 10,000, the fresh data revises this percentage to 9.57 per cent (click HERE).
It is not known as to why, even after releasing the new set of data, till Thursday afternoon, the earlier data, which seemed flawed, have still not been removed from the SECC site.
There is no official explanation why two set of data remain on the SECC site, even though it was clear to any cursory observer that the previous data did not seem reliable and the figures did not match. In fact, if the previous data were to be believed, Gujarat farmers’ incomes were one of the worst in India, which is not the case with the new set of data. It has shifted to become a little above average performer.
The new set of data on the SECC site may have drastically upgraded the percentage of the top-earners of the rural Gujarat households vis-à-vis other states (click HERE for Counterview story based on earlier data). Yet, the fact remains that with the revised data there are eight out of 21 major states with households having highest earning members earning more than Rs 10,000.
Thus, the “revised” set of data put up on SECC site show that Himachal Pradesh has 24.36 per cent such households, followed by Jammu & Kashmir (18.03), Punjab (17.5 per cent), Haryana (16.28 per cent), Uttarakhand (14.72 per cent), Kerala (12.35 per cent), Maharashtra (11.05 per cent), and Rajasthan (9.61 per cent).
Then, the fresh data show that there are 21.76 per cent rural households in Gujarat whose highest earning member earns between Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000. This is lower than six other states (Punjab 24.89 per cent, Haryana 24.68 per cent, Karnataka 22.27 per cent, Madhya Pradesh 22.15 per cent, Bihar 22.14 per cent), and Uttarakhand (21.86 per cent).
The all-India average here is 17.18 per cent. The previous figure for Gujarat was 11.5 per cent – suggesting here again, with the “revised” data, Gujarat has “improved” its position.
However, there is little to cheer in the lowest income group, of less than Rs 5,000. The revised data suggest that Gujarat’s position has gone down somewhat. Ironically, if the earlier data had suggested that Gujarat had just 45 per cent of rural Gujarat’s households, whose top earning members earned less than Rs 5,000, in the new set of data revise this to 68.56 per cent! 
Under the earlier data there were only two states, Telangana (40.02 per cent) and Andhra Pradesh (29.26 per cent), who ranked better than Gujarat (45 per cent). But now there are five other such states – Himachal Pradesh (53.48 per cent), Punjab (57.56 per cent), Haryana (58.96 per cent), Uttarakhand (63.41 per cent), and Jammu & Kashmir (67.45 per cent), followed by Gujarat with 68.56 such households.
Screenshot SECC website showing the data released previously

Comments

TRENDING

Why predictions of an imminent collapse of the Russian economy may be wrong

A veteran Canadian journalist, settled in Russia, stated in a Facebook post that President Donald Trump "is apparently listening to experts who tell him that Russia's economy is on the verge of 'imploding,' and if he just squeezes a bit harder," his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin "will fall into line."

Talking of increased corporate control over news, Rajdeep Sardesai 'evades' alternative media

When I received an intimation that well-known journalist Rajdeep Sardesai was to speak at the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) on February 2, my instant reaction was: I know what he is going to say—his views are quite well known; he wouldn’t be saying anything new. Yet, I decided to go and listen to him to catch his mood at a time when the media, as he (and I) knew it, is changing fast due to the availability of new technological tools that were not accessible even a decade ago.

DeepSeek censors uncomfortable queries on China, but why's Gemini so touchy on India?

The powerful Chinese AI app DeepSeek, which has taken the Silicon Valley by surprise, as it has capacities matching Google’s Gemini and Open AI's ChatGPT, is being criticised for restricting free speech, and rightly so. It is being said that those signing up for the chatbot and its open-source technology "are being confronted with the Chinese Communist Party’s brand of censorship and information control."

Gujarat a police state? How top High Court advocate stunned a senior-most journalist

Rajdeep Sardesai, Anand Yagnik This is a continuation of my earlier blog on well-known journalist Rajdeep Sardesai's lecture in memory of the late Achyut Yagnik at the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA). I was a little surprised when I received the intimation about the venue for the lecture.

5% poor in India? Union govt claim debunked, '26.4% of population below poverty line'

A recent paper, referring to the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) 2022-23 of the Government of India (GoI), has debunked the official claim that poverty has substantially declined. Titled "Poverty in India: The Rangarajan Method and the 2022–23 Household Consumption Expenditure Survey", the paper —authored by scholars CA Sethu, LT Abhinav Surya, and CA Ruthu—states that "more than a quarter of India’s population falls below the poverty line."

Gujarat's water anarchy? 16.7% of Narmada water going to industry, 33% of targeted area irrigated: Govt insider

The Narmada project is something that has always excited me, including how much water will be distributed and to which sector. A few days ago, when I was talking to a top Gujarat government insider, I was a little surprised when I was told that it is up to the “respective states to decide how much Narmada water they would distribute among various sectors” out of the total quota allocated to the four states—Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan—as per the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal award of 1979.

Russians at a Bali yoga camp to avoid drafting for war? Things aren't any different in Ukraine

Are people in Russia becoming frustrated with the prolonged war in Ukraine? And is the war having a similar impact on the people of Ukraine? I have no firsthand information about this, but it is well known how nationalist hysteria often seeks to conceal such frustration, particularly among the youth.

I'm flattered: A New York media house claims I was a KGB agent! Wow, I didn't know that

I was astonished, let me say pleasantly surprised, on receiving a comment by Rich TVX News  on my blog   "Why predictions of an imminent collapse of the Russian economy may be wrong" (January 28).  I don't know who wrote the strange comment from this "media house", which is based in New York, and claims to "hold sway not only among the masses but also within global corridors of power, influencing esteemed politicians and shaping international diplomacy, especially evident during pivotal events like the ongoing crisis in Ukraine."

A shocker for parents? Rush for 'prestigious' varsity degrees to reduce; instead, industry may prefer skills

Recently, I had a conversation with a senior researcher working on a project for a consumer goods multinational corporation (MNC) at one of the top institutes abroad. Insightful and articulate, he holds a PhD from a prestigious university and has a remarkable ability to analyze social dynamics. I am withholding his name because our discussion took place informally during a friend’s lunchtime gathering.