India’s per capita net national income or NNI was around *** thousand rupees in financial year 2025. The annual growth rate was *** percent as compared to the previous year. National income indicators   While GNI (Gross National Income) and NNI are both indicators for a country’s economic performance and welfare, the GNI is related to the GDP plus the net receipts from abroad, including wages and salaries, property income, net taxes and subsidies receivable from abroad. On the other hand, the NNI of a country is equal to its GNI net of depreciation. In 2020, India ranked second amongst the Asia Pacific countries in terms of its gross national income. This has been possible due to a favorable GDP growth in India. Measuring wealth versus welfare   National income per person or per capita is often used as an indicator of people's standard of living and welfare. However, critics object to this by citing that since it is a mean value, it does not reflect the real income distribution. In other words, a small wealthy class of people in the country can skew the per capita income substantially, even though the average population has no change in income. This is exemplified by the fact that in India, the top one percent of people, control over 40 percent of the country’s wealth.

Data and insights on Wealth Distribution in India - share of wealth, average wealth, HNIs, wealth inequality GINI, and comparison with global peers.

In the financial year 2021, a majority of Indian households fell under the aspirers category, earning between ******* and ******* Indian rupees a year. On the other hand, about ***** percent of households that same year, accounted for the rich, earning over * million rupees annually. The middle class more than doubled that year compared to ** percent in financial year 2005. Middle-class income group and the COVID-19 pandemic During the COVID-19 pandemic specifically during the lockdown in March 2020, loss of incomes hit the entire household income spectrum. However, research showed the severest affected groups were the upper middle- and middle-class income brackets. In addition, unemployment rates were rampant nationwide that further lead to a dismally low GDP. Despite job recoveries over the last few months, improvement in incomes were insignificant. Economic inequality While India maybe one of the fastest growing economies in the world, it is also one of the most vulnerable and severely afflicted economies in terms of economic inequality. The vast discrepancy between the rich and poor has been prominent since the last ***** decades. The rich continue to grow richer at a faster pace while the impoverished struggle more than ever before to earn a minimum wage. The widening gaps in the economic structure affect women and children the most. This is a call for reinforcement in in the country’s social structure that emphasizes access to quality education and universal healthcare services.

The estimated per capita income across Sikkim was the highest among Indian states at around *** thousand Indian rupees in the financial year 2024. Meanwhile, it was the lowest in the northern state of Bihar at over ** thousand rupees. India’s youngest state, Telangana stood in the fifth place. The country's average per capita income that year was an estimated *** thousand rupees. What is per capita income? Per capita income is a measure of the average income earned per person in a given area in a certain period. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. If absolute numbers are noted, India’s per capita income doubled from the financial year 2015 to 2023. Wealth inequality However, as per economists, the increase in the per capita income of a country does not always reflect an increase in the income of the entire population. Wealth distribution in India remains highly skewed. The average income hides the disbursal and inequality in a society. Especially in a society like India where the top one percent owned over ** percent of the total wealth in 2022.

In 2022, the majority of Indian adults had a wealth of 10,000 U.S. dollars or less. On the other hand, about *** percent were worth more than *********** dollars that year. India The Republic of India is one of the world’s largest and most economically powerful states. India gained independence from Great Britain on August 15, 1947, after having been under their power for 200 years. With a population of about *** billion people, it was the second most populous country in the world. Of that *** billion, about **** million lived in New Delhi, the capital. Wealth inequality India suffers from extreme income inequality. It is estimated that the top 10 percent of the population holds ** percent of the national wealth. Billionaire fortune has increase sporadically in the last years whereas minimum wages have remain stunted.

An average of 79% of Bangladeshi households were in the 2 lowest income quintiles (after housing costs were deducted) between April 2019 and March 2022

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data was reported at 115.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 73.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data is updated yearly, averaging 42.500 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 280.000 INR in 2011 and a record low of 17.000 INR in 2006. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF025: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Net Income data was reported at 1,027.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 540.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Net Income data is updated yearly, averaging 291.000 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,027.000 INR in 2017 and a record low of 119.000 INR in 2005. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Net Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF025: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data was reported at 370,500.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 251,785.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data is updated yearly, averaging 178,385.000 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 370,500.000 INR in 2017 and a record low of 96,900.000 INR in 2003. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF011: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Available Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data was reported at 8.000 INR in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 15.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data is updated yearly, averaging 13.000 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 52.000 INR in 2007 and a record low of 1.000 INR in 2001. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF025: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

In 2024, the average monthly salary was **** thousand Indian rupees in Mumbai city of India. The average monthly salary in the capital city of Delhi was around **** thousand Indian rupees. In comparison, the average monthly salary was over ** thousand Indian rupees in Madurai during the same year.

India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Remain Same data was reported at 33.100 % in Sep 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 38.000 % for Jun 2018. India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Remain Same data is updated monthly, averaging 35.900 % from Dec 2010 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 36 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 46.400 % in Dec 2013 and a record low of 20.700 % in Mar 2011. India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Remain Same data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Reserve Bank of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Domestic Trade and Household Survey – Table IN.HA003: Consumer Confidence Survey: Reserve Bank of India: Income.

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data was reported at 1,648.000 INR in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 3,174.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data is updated yearly, averaging 2,950.000 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 12,445.000 INR in 2007 and a record low of 231.000 INR in 2001. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Departmental Expenses: Rental and Other Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF011: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Available Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Net Income data was reported at 200,578.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 112,873.000 INR for 2016. IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Net Income data is updated yearly, averaging 63,710.500 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 200,578.000 INR in 2017 and a record low of 26,920.000 INR in 2005. IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Net Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF011: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Available Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

Abstract

The National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) has been carrying out All-India surveys quinquennially on consumer expenditure and employment - unemployment. The 50th round (July 1993 - June 1994) was the Fifth quinquennial survey on Consumer Expenditure and Employment - Unemployment. The previous four quinquennial surveys were the 27th (Oct. 1972 - Sept. 1973), the 32nd (Jul.1977 - Jun. 1978), the 38th ( Jan. - Dec. 1983) and 43rd (Jul. 1987 - Jun. 1988) rounds. In other rounds of NSS, also, a consumer expenditure inquiry on a limited scale was being carried out from the 42nd round (1986-87) onwards. From the 45th round onwards the subject coverage of this schedule has been expanded to include some important questions on employment so that an annual series of consumer expenditure and employment data is now available. While some of these smaller-scale surveys are spread over a full year and others over six months only, the quinquennial (full-scale) surveys have all been of a full year's duration. 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 household consumer expenditure schedule used for the survey collected information on quantity and value of household consumption with a reference period of "last 30 days" for some items of consumption and "last 365 days" for some less frequently purchased items. To minimise recall errors, a very detailed item classification was, as usual, adopted to collect information, including 148 items of food, 13 items of fuel, 28 items of clothing, bedding and footwear, 18 items of educational and medical expenses, 52 items of durable goods, and about 85 other items. The schedule also collected some other household particulars including age, sex and educational level etc. of each household member.

The schedule design for the survey was more or less similar to that adopted in the previous quinquennial round. The field work for the survey was conducted, as usual, by the Field Operations Division of the Organisation. The collected data were processed by the Data Processing Division of NSSO and tabulated by the Computer Centre of Department of Statistics. The reports have been prepared by Survey Design & Research Division (SDRD) of NSSO under the guidance of the Governing Council, NSSO.

Geographic coverage

The survey period of the 50th round was from July 1993 to June 1994. The geographical coverage of the survey was to be the whole of the Indian Union except Ladakh and Kargil districts of Jammu & Kashmir, 768 interior villages of Nagaland and 172 villages in Andaman & Nicobar Islands which remain inaccessible throughout the year. However, certain districts of Jammu & Kashmir viz., Doda, Anantnag, Pulwama, Srinagar, Badgam, Baramula and Kupwara, and Punjab's Amritsar district, had to be excluded from the survey due to unfavourable field conditions.

Analysis unit

Randomly selected households based on sampling procedure and members of the household

Universe

The survey used the interview method of data collection from a sample of randomly selected households and members of the household.

Kind of data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure

The sample design adopted for this round of survey was similar to that followed in the past surveys in its general aspects. The general scheme was a two stage stratified design with the first stage units being villages in the rural areas and urban frame survey blocks (UFS) in the urban areas. The second stage units were the households.

Sampling frame for first stage units: The latest available lists of census villages (which are mostly the 1981 census lists) constitute the sampling frame for the rural sector. For Nagaland, the villages located within 5kms of a bus route constitute the sampling frame whereas, for Andaman & Nicobar Islands, the list of accessible villages constituted the sampling frame. For the urban sector, the lists of NSSO Urban Frame Survey (UFS) blocks have been considered as the sampling frame. However, for some of the newly declared towns of 1991 census for which UFS frame has not been received, the lists of 1991 census EBs have been considered as the sampling frame.

Region formation and stratification: States were divided into regions by grouping contiguous districts similar in respect of population density and cropping pattern. In rural sector each district was treated a separate stratum if the population was below 2 million and where it exceeded 2 million, it was split into two or more strata. This cut off point of population was taken as 1.8 million ( in place of 2 million ) for the purpose of stratification for districts for which the 1981 census frame was used. In the urban sector, strata were formed, within each NSS region on the basis of population size class of towns. However, for towns with population of 4 lakhs or more the urban blocks were divided into two classes viz. one consisting of blocks inhabited by affluent section of the population and the other consisting of the remaining blocks.

Selection of first stage units : Selection of sample villages was done circular systematically with probability proportional to population and sample blocks circular systematically with equal probability. Both the sample villages and the sample blocks were selected in the form of two or more independent sub-samples. In Arunachal Pradesh the procedure of cluster sampling has been followed. Further large villages/blocks having present population of 1200 or more were divided into a suitable number of hamlet- groups/ sub-blocks having equal population content. Two hamlet- groups were selected from the larger villages while one sub-block was selected in urban sector for larger blocks.

Selection of households : While listing the households in the selected villages, certain relatively affluent households were identified and considered as second stage stratum 1 and the rest as second stage stratum 2.

A total of 10 households were surveyed from the selected village/hamlet-groups, 2 from the first category and remaining from the second.Further in the second stage stratum-2, the households were arranged according to the means of livelihood. The means of livelihood were identified on the basis of the major source of income as i) self-employed in non-agriculture, ii) rural labour and iii) others. The land possessed by the households was also ascertained and the frame for selection was arranged on the basis of this information. The households were selected circular systematically from both the second stage strata.

In the urban blocks a different method was used for arranging the households for selection. This involved the identification means of livelihood of households as any one of a) self-employed, b) regular salaried/wage earnings, c) casual labour, d) others. Further the average household monthly per capita consumer expenditure (mpce) was also ascertained. All households with MPCE of (i) Rs. 1200/- or more (in towns with population less than 10 lakhs or (ii) Rs. 1500/- or more (in towns with population 10 lakh or more) formed second-stage stratum 1 and the rest, second-stage stratum 2.The households of second-stage stratum 2 were arranged according to means of livelihood class and MPCE ranges before selection of sample households. A total of 10 households were selected from each sample block as follows (i) For affluent strata/classes : 4 households from second- stage stratum 1 and 6 households from second-stage stratum 2 (ii) For other strata/classes : 2 households from second-stage stratum 1 and 8 from second-stage stratum 2. Households were then selected circular systematically with a random start.

Shortfall in the required number of household in any second-stage stratum was made up by increasing the quota for the other second stage stratum.

A total of 7284 sample villages (Rural) and 4792 sample blocks (Urban) were allotted in central sample. 6983 sample villages and 470 sample blocks were successfully surveyed covering 356351 persons in sample villages and 208389 persons in sample blocks.

Sampling deviation

There was no deviation from the original sampling design.

Mode of data collection

Face-to-face [f2f]

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data was reported at 22,397.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 15,296.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data is updated yearly, averaging 9,440.500 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 61,600.000 INR in 2011 and a record low of 4,002.000 INR in 2006. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Available Room: One-Star: Revenue: Rental and Other Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF011: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Available Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Net Response data was reported at 51.300 % in Sep 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 40.500 % for Jun 2018. India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Net Response data is updated monthly, averaging 43.300 % from Dec 2010 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 36 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 67.500 % in Dec 2010 and a record low of 24.600 % in Sep 2013. India Consumer Confidence Survey: RBI: Income: One Year Ahead: Net Response data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Reserve Bank of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Domestic Trade and Household Survey – Table IN.HA003: Consumer Confidence Survey: Reserve Bank of India: Income.

India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data was reported at 1,897.000 INR in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,204.000 INR for 2016. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data is updated yearly, averaging 817.000 INR from Mar 2000 (Median) to 2017, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,897.000 INR in 2017 and a record low of 446.000 INR in 2003. India IHIS: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: One-Star: Departmental Income data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Hotel Sector – Table IN.QHF025: Indian Hotel Industry Survey: Financial Performance per Occupied Room: by Hotel Ratings: One-Star.

In 2022, ****** was home to the highest number of millionaires, followed by India’s capital New Delhi, and the IT capital - Bengaluru. This comes as no surprise since all three cities have the largest share of high net worth households along with a booming economic outlook. Overall, India had around *** billionaires as of March 2023, and ranked third globally in terms of its ultra-net-worth individuals. A growing wealth gap Despite this, India also has a very high wealth inequality with millions of people living below the poverty line. In fact, according to the last census, the state of Maharashtra (with Mumbai as its capital city) had the highest number of slums across the country with over *** million households. Furthermore, according to a 2015 study on the geography of the super-rich, Bangalore was ranked first in terms of the inequality between its rich and poor, with the wealth of the city’s billionaires being ******* times that of the average per capita GDP in the city. Mumbai came second in this listing, while Delhi was ranked fifth. It's a rich man's world As of 2018, the richest ** percent of Indians owned **** percent of the country’s wealth. The Indian economy was also seen to be one of the fastest growing economies across the world. This indicates the level of unequal distribution of wealth in the country. This is a matter of grave concern and has several implications in terms of the country’s development and progress.

According to a survey conducted in 2015 across India, over 60 percent of the surveyed households had an average monthly income up to 10,000 Indian rupees. This percentage varied among the rural and urban areas, where over 75 percent of the rural households and 45 percent of the urban households earned up to 10,000 Indian rupees monthly. India had a high rate of rural to urban migration, as Indian cities provided better standards of living and employment opportunities.

Multiple income generators

For most of the population, income is earned in form of wages or salary, rent from residential or commercial property, interest from financial investments, and profits from family businesses. Most Indian households have multiple earning members to support consumption expenses on a day to day basis. During the surveyed year, around 48 percent of the households had a single earner, mostly the head of the family, followed by about 30 percent of households with two earning members.

Employment scenario

There are a lot of uncertainties in the job market in India. Non-availability of jobs matching education and skills was one of the main reasons for unemployment among Indian graduates. Underemployment was also a problem, and it was higher in urban areas than rural ones. Even though a majority of the population was self-employed, most jobs taken by workers had no written job contracts in both the salaried and casual employment sectors.