India - Household Consumer Expenditure, January-December, 1983, NSS 38th Round

A 'meal' is composed of one or more readily eatable (generally cooked) items of food, the usual major constituent of which is cereal food. The meals consumed by a person twice or thrice a day provide him/her the required energy (calorie) and other nutrients for living and for pursuing his/her normal a vocations. A 'meal'. As opposed to 'snacks,, 'nasta' or 'high tea'. Contains larger quantum and variety or food. In rare cases, a full meal may contain larger quantity or non-cereal food. Even then, if the total quantum of food in plate is as heavy as a meal, the contents of the food plate will also be considered as a 'meal'. Sometimes the contents of a 'nasta' may not be very different from the contents of a 'meal'. The difference in quantity will there be the guiding factor for deciding whether the plate is to be labeled as a 'meal' or a 'nasta'.

For the purpose of making entry in column "Meals (Payment)". 'Meals received on payment' will mean that the informant has to incur some expense or part with a certain portion of his salary/wage for getting the meals. Meals purchased from hotel, restaurant or an eating house will be considered as 'meals taken away from home on payment' and will have to be counted also for making entry in column "Meals (Payment)".