Socioeconomic classification of Indian population: A conceptual update for Biomedical Research

ABSTRACT An update of Prasad’s socioeconomic classification (1961) of Indian population has been proposed. To handle the trend of inflation it has been linked with the revised All India Wholesale Price Index with a base year of 2003-2004. Interestingly the cutoff obtained for below poverty line corresponds to the BPL (Below Poverty Line) limit of Indian population proposed by an expert panel headed by former RBI governor. It will be the simplest form of socioeconomic classification of Indian population for conducting population and health surveys, and the classification can be updated with the release of month wise AIWPI score. Key words: Prasad’s classification, AIWPI, upgrade REFERENCES Cattell R. The concept of social status. J Soc Psychol 1942; 15:293-308. Park JE, Park K. Test book of preventive and social medicine. Jabalpur. Banarsidas Bhanot 1983; 72-75. Agarwal OP, Bhasin SK, Sharma AK, Chhabra P, Agarwal K, Rajoura OP. A new instrument (Scale) for measuring socioeconomic status of a Family: Preliminary study. Indian J Community Med 2005; 30 (4):111-114. Prasad BG. Social classification of Indian families. J Indian Med Assoc 1961; 37:250-1. Sikdar M. Socioeconomic covariates and their impact on the opportunity for natural selection in a riparian tribe of Northeast India. Anthropologischer Anzeiger 2012; 69 (3): 273-287. Kumar P. Social classification –need for constant updating. Indian J Community Med 1993;18:2 Economic Adviser, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. Economic Advisor, Department of Industrial Policy and promotion, Govt. of India, 2001. Agarwal A.K.2008. Social Classification: the need to update in the present scenario. Ind J Com. Med 2008; 33(1): 50-51. Times of India, 7th July 2014