Household Quality of Living in Indian States: Analysis of 2011 Census

Household quality of living (HQL) refers to three broad aspects including housing condition, amenities and assets. The study is an attempt to investigate regional variation of Indian States in terms of HQL based on recently published 2011 Census data. It also investigates the changes of these aspects between two census periods at the national level. The policies launched so far to meet the minimum basic needs and the extent of achievement is also brought in the ambit of discussion. The study reveals that four Southern States namely, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra; one Western State named Gujarat and four Northern States named Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Uttarakhand demonstrate positive HQL in 2011. Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and whole Eastern and North-Eastern States demonstrate low HQL wherein eastern India demonstrates very poor HQL. Composite index is constructed with the help of PCA (Principal Component Analysis) based on twenty selective variables categorized under three distinctive indices to calculate HQL.