Statistics ministry to take a shot at household income survey again; sets up expert group

India to track income of households

In a first, India will likely have a gauge of consumption and savings by households across social and income categories and religious groups for 2026, the statistics ministry noted on June 23.

The proposed survey will attempt to capture household income and draw from surveys conducted in Australia, USA, Canada and South Africa.

The ministry had first made an attempt to conduct such a survey in 1955, followed by another one in 1958, but did not release the results of the surveys.

While it attempted to collect the data again after a decade, the idea was dropped as consumption and savings estimates were higher than the income estimates derived using these studies.

Technical expert group

The ministry has now announced a technical expert group under the chairmanship of Surjit Bhalla, former executive director for India at the International Monetary Fund, to best capture data.

Other members of the group include Ram Singh, Director, Delhi School of Economics; Sonalde Desai, Professor, NCAER; Rajesh Shukla, MD & CEO, People Research on India’s Consumer Economy; and Tirthankar Patnaik, Chief Economist, National Stock Exchange.

“The TEG will guide the National Statistics Office towards conducting an all-India income distribution survey, tentatively scheduled for 2026. The Expert Group will provide guidance with regard to finalisation of concepts and definitions, preparation of the survey method and instruments, sampling design and method of estimation, and incorporate best country practices as adopted across the world,” the ministry noted.