Gujarat average performer in providing means of livelihood to rural households

Data of Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011 for Rural India, released recently by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, gives a unique opportunity to scholars and policy makers to make inter-state comparisons, suggesting how different rural areas of the country are performing across India. Based on household data taken from the National Population Register along with the Temporary Identification Number (TIN), the survey, say policy makers, can be used in evidence based planning for rural development and poverty reduction. Dealing with different aspects of their socio-economic status, some of the more prominent indicators suggest, given in the form of charts below, the level of prosperity and deprivation in selected fields in different states.
They also suggest where does rural Gujarat, touted as a “model” by the powers that be for other states to follow, stands vis-à-vis other states. Collected in 2012-13, despite claimed double digit agricultural growth, which many experts have doubted, as one can see, Gujarat is, at best, an average performer in income and asset ownership. Some of the highlights of inter-state comparison:
1. The data on income suggest that while in India as a whole nearly 92 per cent of the highest earning members of the rural households earn less than Rs 10,000 per month, in Gujarat there are about 89 per cent such households, about the same.

2. In the country as a whole, there are 30.1 per cent rural households who are mainly dependent on cultivation to earn a livelihood. By comparison, in Gujarat, 40.1 per cent rural households depend on cultivation.

3. In Gujarat, there are 43.28 per cent rural households which depend mainly on manual casual labour to earn livelihood, as against the all-India average of 51.14 per cent.

4. There are 55 per cent of the rural households which have no land to cultivate, as against the all-India average of about the same, 56 per cent.

5. In Gujarat, there are 52 per cent rural households whose agriculture has to depend on the vagaries of nature. They own unirrigated land. The all-India average is far less — 40 per cent.

6. Gujarat’s 33 per cent of households enjoy the advantage of irrigating their fields and sowing two crops, as against the all-India average of 37 per cent.

7. Gujarat’s 44.69 per cent of households live in kuccha houses, which is one of the highest in the country. Even national average is is a little less — 44.62 per cent.

8. Despite poor income levels, Gujarat has highest number of rural households which own at least a two-wheeler motorized vehicle — 30.45 per per cent. This is against the all-India average of 20.69 per cent.

9. Gujarat’s 16.19 per cent of rural households own refrigerators, as against the all-India average of 11.04 per cent.

10. Despite claims of Gujarat having one of the best communications network in India, 70.83 per cent or rural households have mobile phones, almost equal to the all-India average of 68.35 per cent.

11. Gujarat’s 25.8 per cent of the rural households own no communications network, neither mobile nor telephone, again around the same as the all-India average — 27.93 per cent.

—
Sourced on SECC, charts have been prepared to make inter-state comparison by selecting 21 major Indian states. For more details, click HERE

Comments

Irrational? Basis for fear among Hindus about being 'swamped' by Muslims

I was amused while reading an article titled "Ham Paanch, Hamare Pachees", shared on Facebook, by well-known policy analyst Mohan Guruswamy, an alumnus of the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. Guruswamy, who has also worked as an advisor to the Finance Minister with the rank of Secretary to the Government of India, seeks to probe, as he himself states, "the supposed Muslim attitude to family planning"—a theme that was invoked by Narendra Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister ahead of the December 2002 assembly polls.

Why's Australian crackdown rattling Indian students? Whopping 25% fake visa applications

This is what happened several months ago. A teenager living in the housing society where I reside was sent to Australia to study at a university in Sydney with much fanfare. The parents, whom I often met as part of a group, would tell us how easily the boy got his admission with the help of "some well-meaning friends," adding that they had obtained an education loan to ensure he could study at a graduate school.

Tracking a lost link: Soviet-era legacy of Gujarati translator Atul Sawani

The other day, I received a message from a well-known activist, Raju Dipti, who runs an NGO called Jeevan Teerth in Koba village, near Gujarat’s capital, Gandhinagar. He was seeking the contact information of Atul Sawani, a translator of Russian books—mainly political and economic—into Gujarati for Progress Publishers during the Soviet era. He wanted to collect and hand over scanned soft copies, or if possible, hard copies, of Soviet books translated into Gujarati to Arvind Gupta, who currently lives in Pune and is undertaking the herculean task of collecting and making public soft copies of Soviet books that are no longer available in the market, both in English and Indian languages.

Gujarat slips in India Justice Report 2025: From model state to mid-table performer

Overall ranking in IJR reports The latest India Justice Report (IJR), prepared by legal experts with the backing of several civil society organisations and aimed at ranking the capacity of states to deliver justice, has found Gujarat—considered by India's rulers as a model state for others to follow—slipping to the 11th position from fourth in 2022.

Punishing senior citizens? Flipkart, Shopsy stop Cash on Delivery in Ahmedabad!

The other day, someone close to me attempted to order some goodies on Flipkart and its subsidiary Shopsy. After preparing a long list of items, this person, as usual, opted for the Cash on Delivery (popularly known as COD) option, as this senior citizen isn't very familiar with online prepaid payment methods like UPI, credit or debit cards, or online bank transfers through websites. In fact, she is hesitant to make online payments, fearing, "I may make a mistake," she explained, adding, "I read a lot about online frauds, so I always choose COD as it's safe. I have no knowledge of how to prepay online."

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Not just Haren Pandya, even Dhirubhai Shah, youngest assembly speaker, wanted to be Gujarat CM

Dhirubhai Shah with Keshubhai Patel When Keshubhai Patel was sought to be replaced by the BJP high command in 2001, everyone knows that Narendra Modi became the final choice. However, someone who was part of the top circles those days now tells me something I had no knowledge of—that the choice was between Modi and a Kutch MLA, Dhirubhai Shah, who served as the 16th Speaker from March 1998 to December 2002 during the 10th Assembly, the youngest to take the office.

Of lingering shadow of Haren Pandya's murder during Modi's Gujarat days

Sunita Williams’ return to Earth has, ironically, reopened an old wound: the mysterious murder of her first cousin, the popular BJP leader Haren Pandya, in 2003. Initially a supporter of Narendra Modi, Haren turned against him, not sparing any opportunity to do things that would embarrass Modi. Social media and some online news portals, including The Wire , are abuzz with how Modi’s recent invitation to Sunita to visit India comes against the backdrop of how he, as Gujarat’s chief minister, didn’t care to offer any official protocol support during her 2007 visit to Gujarat.

Area set aside in Ahmedabad for PM's affordable housing scheme 'has gone to big builders'

Following my article on affordable housing in Counterview, which quoted a top real estate consultant, I was informed that affordable housing—a scheme introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi—has deviated from its original intent. A former senior bureaucrat, whom I used to meet during my Sachivalaya days, told me that an entire area in Ahmedabad, designated for the scheme, has been used to construct costly houses instead.

Search This Blog