"Changing Spending Habits: Indians Allocate More to Discretionary Items as Poverty Levels Decline"

The Indian government's Household Consumption Expenditure Survey reveals that Indians are spending less on food, particularly staples like rice and wheat, and more on discretionary items such as processed food, as well as durables like televisions and fridges. The survey shows a significant increase in average rural and urban consumer spending compared to the previous survey in 2011-2012. This shift in spending patterns comes amid controversy over the government's handling of economic data, with the new survey set to impact India's consumer price inflation index.