Egg, Fish & Meat: Undisputed champs of household spending
Moa Jamir
Dimapur | January 9
The average monthly expenditure of households in Nagaland surged by over 17% between the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 periods, according to a recent survey released by the Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
As per the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) Factsheet, the Monthly Per Capita Consumption Expenditure (MPCE) in rural Nagaland stood at Rs 5,155 in 2023-24.
This represents an increase of Rs 762 in absolute terms, or approximately 17.35%, compared to the rural MPCE of Rs 4,393 in the previous year.
Similarly, per capita consumption expenditure in urban areas also increased by around 12%, rising from Rs 7,159 in 2022-23 to Rs 8,022 in 2023-24. This marks a percentage increase of approximately 12.06%.
While the absolute gap between rural and urban MPCE increased from Rs 2,766 in 2022-23 to Rs 2,867 in 2023-24 (an increase of Rs 101), the gap narrowed in percentage terms, dropping from around 62.97% to 55.62%.
This suggests that while both rural and urban areas have experienced improvements, urban areas still have significantly higher per capita consumption.
The higher consumption in urban areas may be attributed to better availability of goods, services, and higher overall living standards. On the other hand, the substantial increase in MPCE in rural areas may indicate that rural consumption is gradually catching up with urban standards to some extent.
However, the rise in consumption expenditures across both rural and urban sectors also reflects higher prices, which have contributed to increased household expenses.
The HCES aims to collect information on the consumption of goods and services by households, helping to understand patterns of expenditure, standard of living, and overall well-being.
The survey period typically spans from August of the current year to July of the following year, with data covering both food and non-food items, as well as services.
All India and North-East status
In comparison, the average MPCE in rural and urban India in 2023-24 was estimated to be Rs 4,122 and Rs 6,996, respectively, both significantly lower than in Nagaland.
These figures exclude the value of items received free of cost through social welfare programmes. When these values are included, the all-India estimates rise to Rs 4,247 for rural areas and Rs 7,078 for urban areas.
In Nagaland, the inclusion of welfare programme values increased the estimates to Rs 5,282 for rural areas and Rs 8,136 for urban areas.
Nationally, the urban-rural gap in MPCE has decreased to 71% in 2023-24 from 84% in 2011-12, further confirming sustained consumption growth in rural areas, the report noted.
Among the North-East states, Sikkim recorded the highest MPCE for both rural and urban areas, at Rs 9,474 and Rs 13,965, respectively. Tripura also had a high MPCE at Rs 6,368 for rural areas and Rs 8,118 for urban areas, while Arunachal Pradesh had Rs 6,107 and Rs 9,877, respectively.
Out of the eight North-East states, only Assam and Meghalaya had lower rural MPCE than the national average, at Rs 3,961 and Rs 3,900, respectively. In urban areas, Assam (Rs 6,913) and Manipur (Rs 6,005) had lower MPCE than the all-India level.
Top spending categories in Nagaland
While the complete HCES report for 2023-24 is yet to be published, the consumption patterns and item baskets can be inferred from the 2022-23 report.
According to the HCES 2022-23, ‘Egg, Fish & Meat’ was the single highest expenditure item in both food and non-food categories.
For instance, in rural areas, out of a total MPCE of Rs 2,276.96 on food items, Rs 652.53 (approximately 28.65%) was spent on ‘Egg, Fish & Meat’ in 2022-23.
Similarly, in urban areas, out of Rs 3,036.61 spent on food items, Rs 868.56 (around 28.60%) was spent on ‘Egg, Fish & Meat’.
A comparison with the National Sample Survey (NSS) 68th Round (2011-12) reflects similar preferences for meat and related items in Nagaland.
According to the NSS 68th Round, out of Rs 1,043.14 MPCE on food items in Nagaland, Rs 307 was spent on ‘Egg, Fish & Meat’. The urban counterpart spent Rs 299.73 out of Rs 1,085.50 MPCE on food items.
Interestingly, the second-highest MPCE in 2011-12 was for ‘Clothing & Bedding’ in both rural and urban areas, at Rs 212.70 and Rs 254.12, respectively.
However, a decade later, expenditure patterns showed a significant shift.
In 2022-23, expenditure on ‘Beverages, Processed Food, Etc.’ had overtaken ‘Clothing & Bedding’ in both rural and urban areas, at Rs 425.11 and Rs 744.42, respectively.
The increases in ‘Clothing & Bedding’ were much lower, at Rs 351.86 and Rs 513.32.
Other high MPCE items included Vegetables, Durable Goods, Conveyance, and Fuel & Light.
Expenditure on rent in urban areas also showed a significant increase, from Rs 101.02 to Rs 410.73 during the two periods.
In rural areas, MPCE on education in 2022-23 was Rs 142.23, compared to Rs 336.21 in urban areas.
Rural households also spent Rs 172.89 monthly on ‘Pan, Tobacco & Intoxicants’, while their urban counterparts spent Rs 249.72.
Meanwhile, as per the latest HCES 2023-24, the trend observed nationally is consistent with previous surveys, showing that non-food items remain the major contributors to household expenditure, accounting for about 53% in rural areas and 60% in urban areas.
Key contributors to non-food expenditure in 2023-24 include conveyance, clothing, bedding & footwear, miscellaneous goods & entertainment, and durable goods.
Finally, consumption inequality in both rural and urban areas has declined from 2022-23 levels and the Gini coefficient for rural areas has decreased to 0.237 in 2023-24 from 0.266, while for urban areas, it has dropped to 0.284 from 0.314, the report added.
