All-India Household Consumer Expenditure Survey

In news– The All-India Household Consumer Expenditure Survey (AHCE), usually conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO) every five years, is set to resume this year after a prolonged break.

What is Consumer Expenditure Survey?

The CES is traditionally a quinquennial (recurring every five years) survey conducted by the government’s National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) that is designed to collect information on the consumption spending patterns of households across the country, both urban and rural.
The data gathered in this exercise reveals the average expenditure on goods (food and non-food) and services and helps generate estimates of household Monthly Per Capita Consumer Expenditure (MPCE) as well as the distribution of households and persons over the MPCE classes.

Key updates-

India hasn’t had any official estimates on per capita household spending, used to arrive at estimates of poverty levels in different parts of the country and to review economic indicators like the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), since 2011–12.
The government had junked the findings of the last Survey, conducted in 2017–18, citing “data quality” issues.
However, in November 2019, the Statistics and Programme Implementation Ministry had dismissed reports that the 2017–18 Survey findings were being withheld due to adverse outcomes reflecting a decline in consumer spending.

Typically, the Survey is conducted between July and June and this year’s exercise is expected to be completed by June 2023.

The NSS Consumer Expenditure Survey generates estimates of household MPCE and the distribution of households and persons over the MPCE classes.
It is designed to collect information regarding expenditure on consumption of goods and services (food and non-food) consumed by households.
The results, after release, are also used for rebasing of the GDP and other macro-economic indicators.
The results will include separate data sets for rural and urban parts, and also splice spending patterns for each State and Union Territory, as well as different socio–economic groups.

National Statistical Office (NSO)-

NSO is one of two wings of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
NSO, also called the Statistics Wing, consists of the Central Statistical Office (CSO), the Computer centre and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO).

NSO is mandated with the following responsibilities:

It acts as the nodal agency for planned development of the statistical system in the country, lays down and maintains norms and standards in the field of statistics, involving concepts and definitions, methodology of data collection, processing of data and dissemination of results
Coordinates the statistical work in respect of the Ministries/Departments of the Government of India and State Statistical Bureaus (SSBs), advises the Ministries/Departments of the Government of India on statistical methodology and on statistical analysis of data
Prepares national accounts as well as publishes annual estimates of national product, government and private consumption expenditure, capital formation, savings, estimates of capital stock and consumption of fixed capital, as also the state level gross capital formation of supra-regional sectors and prepares comparable estimates of State Domestic Product (SDP) at current prices
Maintains liaison with international statistical organizations, such as, the United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD), the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Food and Agriculture Organizations (FAO), the International Labour Organizations (ILO), etc.
It compiles and releases the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) every month in the form of ‘quick estimates’; conducts the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI); and provides statistical information to assess and evaluate the changes in the growth, composition and structure of the organized manufacturing sector.
Organizes and conducts periodic all-India Economic Censuses and follow-up enterprise surveys, provides an in-house facility to process the data collected through various socio economic surveys and follow-up enterprise surveys of Economic Censuses.
Conducts large scale all-India sample surveys for creating the database needed for studying the impact of specific problems for the benefit of different population groups in diverse socio economic areas, such as employment, consumer expenditure, housing conditions and environment, literacy levels, health, nutrition, family welfare, etc..
Examines the survey reports from the technical angle and evaluates the sampling design including survey feasibility studies in respect of surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Organizations and other Central Ministries and Departments.
Dissemination of statistical information on various aspects through a number of publications distributed to Government, semi-Government, or private data users/ agencies and disseminates data, on request, to the United Nations agencies like the UNSD, the ESCAP, the ILO and other international agencies.
Releases grants-in-aid to registered Non-Governmental Organizations and research institutions of repute for undertaking special studies or surveys, printing of statistical reports, and financing seminars, workshops and conferences relating to different subject areas of official statistics.