Household Consumer Expenditure, July 2004 - June 2005

NSS 61st Round

The programme of quinquennial surveys on consumer expenditure and employment & unemployment, adopted by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) since 1972-73, provides a time series of household consumer expenditure data. Consumer expenditure surveys conducted in NSS rounds besides the 'quinquennial rounds' - starting from the 42nd round (July 1986 - June 1987) - also provide data on the subject for the period between successive quinquennial rounds, using a much smaller sample. The last survey - the sixth - of the quinquennial series was held during the 55th round (July 1999-June 2000). The seventh was conducted in the 61st round during July 2004 - June 2005.
Household consumer expenditure is measured as the expenditure incurred by a household on domestic account during a specified period, called reference period. It includes the imputed values of goods and services, which are not purchased but procured otherwise for consumption. In other words, it is the sum total of monetary values of all the items (i.e. goods and services) consumed by the household on domestic account during the reference period. The imputed rent of owner-occupied houses is excluded from consumption expenditure. Any expenditure incurred towards the productive enterprises of the households is also excluded from household consumer expenditure.
The word “consumption” is used in different senses. The main reason for this is that some items can be used only once while others can be used repeatedly. A household consumer expenditure survey, therefore, needs to assign different meanings to consumption for different items. The NSS traditionally uses three different definitions or approaches to consumption of different items: Consumption approach, Expenditure approach and First-use approach. Items of consumption have been classified into four groups. The Consumption approach is used for Group I, the First-use approach for Group II and the Expenditure approach for Groups III and IV. The four groups of items are:
Group I: Items of food other than 'cooked meals*', pan, tobacco and intoxicants and fuel and light: Consumption is the actual consumption during the reference period. Both quantity and value of such consumption are collected.
Group II: Items of clothing and footwear: An item is consumed if it is brought into first use during the reference period. The item may or may not be procured within the reference period. It can be procured through purchase or home production, or as gift or charity. Both quantity and value are collected.
Group III: Durable goods: Any expenditure incurred on an item for purchase or towards cost of raw materials and services for its construction and repair during the reference period is treated as consumption of the item.
Group IV: Cooked meals; Miscellaneous goods and services including education, medical, rent, taxes and cesses: Any expenditure incurred on the item during the reference period is treated as consumption of the item. Consumption is recorded in value terms only.