Vehicle ownership among India's poorest soars 6.5X in 10 years: Govt data

New Delhi: The latest government data showed a significant increase in vehicle ownership among the poorest households in India over the past decade. 

According to the data sourced from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation and shared by PM’s economic advisory council member Shamika Ravi, there was a 6.5X increase in ownership of a vehicle among the poorest households in the last 10 years.

In 2011-12, only about 6% of the poorest households in India owned a vehicle, which could include motorcycles, scooters, cars, or jeeps.

By 2022-23, this figure had jumped to 40%. 

The state-wise data revealed that Punjab recorded a maximum increase with 62.5% of the poorest households owing a vehicle in rural areas while it was 65.7% in the urban areas.

West Bengal fared at the bottom of the list with just 9.6% of the poorest households in rural and 15.2% in urban areas owning a vehicle.

Bihar is the only state where rural households owning a vehicle outnumber urban households.

In Bihar, 19.1% of the poorest households in rural areas own a vehicle while only 16.8% of the poorest urban households own a vehicle.

The last 10 years have been economically remarkable for the poorest 20% of Indian population. Here’s one important marker: the proportion of poorest households that owned a vehicle (motorcycle/scooter,car/jeep)-
2011-12: 6%
2022-23: 40%
State-wise growth is even more fascinating! pic.twitter.com/rsX7FEUBST

— Prof. Shamika Ravi (@ShamikaRavi) August 22, 2024

This increase reflects a substantial improvement in the economic conditions or at least the purchasing power of these households, allowing them to afford some form of motorised transport.

This growth in vehicle ownership among the poorest segments of the population can be seen as an indicator of economic progress or changes in economic policy affecting these groups. 

However, a few critics of the Narendra Modi government opined that these figures might also reflect broader economic trends like easier access to credit, changes in consumer behaviour, or even discrepancies in how "poorest" is defined or reported across different surveys or years.