Per Capita GDP
(Source: MOSPI / RBI)
Performance of an economy depends on the amount of goods and services produced in that economy. In monetary terms the measure is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Gross National Income (GNI), Net national Product (NNP) and Net national Income
GDP per capita is often used as a measure of a persons welfare. Countries with higher GDP per capita are seen in the top echelons of human Development Index. Thus measurement of Gross Domestic Product is an extremely important exercise, which requires collection and analysis of large volume of data. In India the Central Statistical Office of Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has been measuring National Income and other related macroeconomic aggregates
Current versus Constant Prices:
National income, regardless of the concept, is obviously measured at prices prevailing during the period or in other words at current prices. When calculated over a number of years, the changes in national income would, therefore, include implicitly not only the effect of the changes in production but also the changes in prices. This estimate compared over the period would not, therefore, give a proper measure of the overall real increase in production of the country or the economic welfare of the people or growth of the economy. Therefore, it would be necessary to eliminate the effect of prices, or in other words to recompute the whole series at given prices of one particular base year. National income thus computed is termed as national income at constant prices or in real terms
Table below captures trend in India's per capita GDP at Current and at Constant (2011-12) Prices
For the year 2023-24, India's population was estimated at 1,395 million, GDP at Current Prices was estimated at Rs 301.2 lakh crore (same as Rs trillion), GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices was estimated at Rs 176.5 trillion, leading to per capita GDP at Current Prices of Rs 215,935.2/person and at Constant Prices of Rs 126,527.5/person
| Year | Population in Million | GDP Current in Rs Trillion | GDP Constant in Rs Trillion | Per Capita GDP Current Rs per Person | Per Capita GDP Constant Rs per Person |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | 1395.0 | 301.2 | 176.5 | 215935.2 | 126527.5 |
| 2022-23 | 1382.9 | 268.9 | 161.6 | 194450.7 | 116891.9 |
| 2021-22 | 1368.6 | 236.0 | 150.2 | 172421.6 | 109761.7 |
| 2020-21 | 1355.4 | 198.5 | 136.9 | 146479.6 | 101038.1 |
| 2019-20 | 1341.0 | 201.0 | 145.3 | 149914.9 | 108386.6 |
| 2018-19 | 1327.0 | 189.0 | 139.9 | 142424.0 | 105447.7 |
| 2017-18 | 1314.0 | 170.9 | 131.4 | 130061.2 | 100034.9 |
| 2016-17 | 1299.0 | 153.9 | 123.1 | 118488.6 | 94751.3 |
| 2015-16 | 1283.0 | 137.7 | 113.7 | 107341.2 | 88616.5 |
| 2014-15 | 1267.0 | 124.7 | 105.3 | 98405.4 | 83091.3 |
| 2013-14 | 1251.0 | 112.3 | 98.0 | 89796.3 | 78348.3 |
| 2012-13 | 1235.0 | 99.4 | 92.1 | 80518.3 | 74599.3 |
| 2011-12 | 1220.0 | 87.4 | 87.4 | 71609.3 | 71609.3 |
If we scroll down the above Table, as can be seen, GDP at Current Prices and GDP at Constant (2011-12) are the same, namely Rs 87.4 lakh crore (same as Rs trillion) each. This is because the Base Year is 2011-12
Over the years, nominal per capita GDP has grown from Rs 71,609.3/person in 2011-12 to Rs 215,935.2/person in 2023-24, while real per capita GDP has grown from same Rs 71,609.3/person in 2011-12 to 126,527.5/person in 2023-24, clearly highlighting the effect of eliminating the prices (or inflation)
View the trends graphically