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ECONOMIC TRENDS
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GROUP III
This group comprises families with an annual income of below Rs. 1,800. In urban areas they stayed in one room tenements which served as a kitchen, a bed room, a drawing room, all combined together. They generally stayed in mixed locality. Many families stayed in huts constructed by them on open lands. In rural areas they stayed in huts on the village out skirts. It was a hut or a room not well ventilated and without proper surroundings.
The average annual occupational income of a family in this group was placed at Rs. 1,500. A family was composed of five adults and three minors making a total of 6.5 units. Only about 50 per cent of the families surveyed owned small huts and 8 had landed property.
None was getting any income from the houses owned by them. Their average occupational income of Rs. 1,500 was supplemented by small income from agriculture in respect of only eight families out of twenty four surveyed.
No family had cash savings. Savings in other forms such as provident fund, insurance to the extent of about Rs. 2,000 per family were witnessed in respect of only five families. Almost all the families were in debts. With their meagre income just sufficient to make both ends meet, they had to contract debts for unforeseen or contingent expenses.
The average monthly expenditure of a family on food items came to Rs. 94 comprising—cereals and pulses, Rs, 55; oils, Rs. 15; vegetables, mutton, eggs, etc., Rs. 12 and milk, Rs. 12. Expenditure on education was also nominal and was incurred by only four families out of 24. Each family spent about Rs. 10 on lighting and Rs. 10 on rent.
The average annual expenditure of a family on clothing was Rs. 240. They used coarse quality clothes and had many a time just two pairs of dress. They could not afford to spend much on medical account due
to limits placed by their income upon such expenses. The per family expenditure in this behalf was about Rs. 96 per annum. Their religious expenditure per annum was Rs. 30 approximately. They spent, every year, about Rs. 60 on travelling and miscellaneous items.
Generally they had no furniture except a khat (charpoy) and their household equipment mostly consisted of earthenware with a few pots of aluminium to store water.
The average monthly expenditure of a family in this group on food items was placed at Rs. 94 which was about 76 per cent of their income and about 65 per cent of their total monthly expenditure. This variation in percentages is a clear testimony to their indebtedness.
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