Household Survey

House, Household Amenities and Assets Survey

(A comprehensive survey giving reflection on the asset base of around 250 million households in the country is a timely reality check on still illusory goal of inclusive development.)   

India, despite being second fastest growing economy and fourth largest in the world if measured at purchasing power parity, has not done so well in terms of social inclusion. The inference drawn is on the basis of the House, Household Amenities and Assets Survey by Census of India released in March,2012. In a comprehensive painstaking exercise, Census 2011 has compiled data on assets held by total 24, 66, 92,667 households in the country of which 16, 78, 26,730 reside in rural areas and 7, 88, 65,937 in urban areas. The elaborate data is likely to be of much importance in formulating policies needed to reach the goal of inclusive development.

Nature of households

Metamorphose is at play in India due to surging urbanization breaking stagnant social customs and values which has resulted in Indian society now being overwhelmingly made up of nuclear families. It can be gauged from the fact that 70.1 percent of household are having only one married couple staying in them which signify breaking up of joint family system even in rural India where 69.6 percent of households are nuclear families. The dominating size of the households is in the range of 4 to 8 members as they account for more than 65 percent of total households. Interestingly, 86.6 per cent Indians live in their own houses but 37.1 per cent live in one room houses, 31.7 per cent live in two room’s houses and 14.5 per cent live in three room’s houses. There has been an 11 percentage point increase in households using electricity, from 56 per cent to 67 per cent. The rural-urban gap for this indicator has dropped by seven percentage point, from 44 per cent to 37 per cent.

Health, water and Sanitation

Two-thirds of households continue to use firewood, crop residue, cow dung cakes or coal for cooking, thus putting women to significant health hazards and hardship. Despite all the talk only around 28 percent households utilize LPG for cooking. Out of the census houses 53.2 percent are in good condition. Only 46.9 per cent of the total 246.6 million households have toilet facilities and of the rest, 3.2 per cent use public toilets. And 49.8 per cent are forced to ease themselves in the open. Similarly, 42 percent only get the privilege of using bathroom facilities. Kitchen facilities are enjoyed by just half of the total households. The data also shows that only 32 per cent of the households use treated water for drinking and 17 per cent still fetch drinking water from a source located more than 500 metres in rural areas or 100 metres in urban centres. As much as 48.9 percent don’t have any drainage facilities in their house putting them at the risk of being infected with severe waterborne diseases. Even in case of households having drainage in majority of cases it’s likely to be an open one with consequential repercussions on hygiene conditions.  

Communication and Entertainment

There has been a 16 per cent increase in the number of households watching television, but a 15 per cent decline in the use of radios and transistors. A total of 47.2 per cent of households own a television; only 19.9 per cent have either radio or transistors. Mobile has emerged as the leading medium for communicating with 53.2 percent households utilising it for remaining in touch with near and dear ones. Landline telephony has stagnated with only 4 percent household possessing it. Efforts to promote broadband connectivity have failed to deliver on ground with low penetration of 3.1 percent in terms of coverage of household.

Private Transport & Financial Inclusion

All the automobile giants are trying to tap growing Indian markets by reaching to ‘Great Indian Middle class’ which may be significant in absolute number in comparison to most of the western countries but accounts for not more than 5 percent of Indian households if owning car be considered as a criteria for such classification. The facts bought out by the census reveals that strikingly low 4.7 percent households own four wheelers. Reach of two-wheelers has grown to 21 percent of the households with good old cycle still being the most preferred mode of transport by finding its way in 44.8 percent of the households. As government seeks to evaluate cash transfer as a potential option for transferring welfare benefits, it has something to cheer as the reach of banking facilities does show improvement with 58.7 percent of Indian households availing them. Even in rural areas more than 50 percent of households are making use of the banking services.

Contrasting Facts

The survey thus brings out that the half the country's population may not have a toilet at home but they are not without a mobile phone. The data on housing, household amenities and assets does succeed in casting a new light on a country in the throes of a complex transition, where millions have access to state-of-the-art technologies and consumer goods, but majority of them lack access to the most rudimentary facilities.

  Outcome of the Household Survey

Household Survey Key Entities	Rural	Urban	Total
One-room households	39.4	32.1	37.1
Single couple households	69.6	71.1	70.1
Tap water from treated source	17.9	62.0	32.0
Electricity	55.3	92.7	67.2
Latrine facility in house	30.7	81.4	67.2
Firewood for cooking	62.5	20.1	49.0
LPG/ PNG for cooking	11.4	65.0	28.5
Availing bank services	54.4	67.8	58.7
Television	33.4	76.7	47.2
Computer (with internet)	0.7	8.3	3.1
Computer (without internet)	4.4	10.4	6.3
Telephone (Landline or mobile)	54.3	82.0	63.2
Telephone (Mobile only)	47.9	64.3	53.2
Bicycle	46.2	41.9	44.8
Scooter/ Motorcycle/ Moped)	14.3	35.2	21.0
Car/ Jeep/ Van	2.3	9.7	4.7
None of the specified assets	22.9	7.0	17.8
Total Households	16,78,26,730	7,88,65,937	24,66,92,667

Source: House, Household Amenities and Assets Survey, Census, 2011

By Saurabh Naruka