Socio-Economic Impact of HIV and AIDS in Tamil nadu

lesser than that of non-HIV households
both in rural and urban areas. However,
on medical expenses, the HIV households
spend a much higher proportion of their
consumption expenditure in comparison
with non-HIV households. In all, it appears
that in order to compensate for the higher
expenditure that they are forced to incur
on health related items and on rent, the
HIV households may be cutting down
expenditure on all other items including
very important ones like (i) food which
is very essential for their health, and (ii)
education of children in the household
which is likely to have adverse effects on
the family’s future income.
Table 5.2 below gives the average per
capita per month expenditure on these
items for the two sets of households. It
is seen that even in absolute terms the
HIV households spend less on food and
education of children, but spend more
on house rent and medical expenses in
comparison with non-HIV households.
The total per capita expenditure on
these items is very similar between the
two kinds of households. While the per
capita expenditure of the rural samples
in non-HIV (Rs. 817) and HIV (Rs. 807)
households are very nearly the same,
this is slightly higher for the urban HIV
households (Rs. 1,212) in comparison
with urban non-HIV households (Rs.
1,123). On the whole, the average per
capita per month expenditure of the HIV
households is slightly more than the non-
HIV households in the sample in spite of
their per capita income being lesser than
the non- HIV households.
Tables 5.3 and 5.4 present the average
annual household expenditure and
the per capita expenditure pattern,
respectively, of the two sets of households
with reference to occupation groups.
While in non-HIV households it is seen
that the total average income is slightly
higher than the average expenditure, in
the case of HIV households, the reverse
is true, that is, the average expenditure is
more than the average income and this
is true across all occupational groups
(in HIV households) except that of self-
Table 5.2
Average per capita per month expenditure on some major items
(in Rupees)
Item Non-HIV households HIV households
Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total
Cereals 133 129 132 96 104 100
Pulses 24 24 24 16 21 18
Other food 249 303 274 253 315 282
Total food 408 457 431 367 440 401
Fuel and light 53 110 79 48 98 71
House rent 8 75 38 31 162 92
Clothing & footwear 34 45 39 36 47 41
Durables 13 22 17 12 16 14
Education of children 34 47 40 31 32 31
Medical 44 28 37 93 74 84
Other non-food 223 339 277 189 343 261
Total 817 1,123 958 807 1,212 995
50 Socio-Economic Impact of HIV and AIDS in Tamil Nadu, India