Household Survey on Energy Use and Dietary Quality in India, 2024

The survey gathered detailed information on household energy use, food consumption in rural and urban communities in Telangana with the aim to provide a detailed picture of how households navigate food and energy-related challenges in their everyday lives. It covered multiple areas, including demographic composition, decision-making processes related to food and fuel, and the affordability and accessibility of essential resources. A key focus was on household energy use, assessing sources of lighting, the reliability of electricity supply, and the types of fuels used for cooking. The survey also explored how households respond to fluctuations in energy prices, particularly how rising costs influence cooking practices and energy choices. In addition to energy use, the survey examined dietary diversity, focusing on type of food consumed in the day before and how they were prepared. Respondents provided insights into their reliance on different food sources, the impact of price changes on their diets, and how constraints in cooking fuel availability influenced meal preparation. A food security module assessed periods of food scarcity, meal-skipping behaviours, and strategies used to manage financial and energy constraints.<p>Recently both energy and food prices have been skyrocketing across the world. These rising prices are likely to force disadvantaged households to make difficult trade-offs between food and modern energy (e.g. electricity, liquefied petroleum gas, kerosene and etc), leading to lower food security and heavier reliance on polluting but cheaper fuels like wood, charcoal, oranimal waste. Despite the close connection between household energy use and their diet, little is known about the dynamics behind this energy-food link, largely due to the lack of appropriate household level data. This exploratory research project aims to develop and pilot a comprehensive survey instrument in Telangana, India, to assess the energy-food link on a granular level.</p>本调研收集了印度特伦甘纳邦（Telangana）农村与城镇社区家庭能源使用、食品消费的详细信息，旨在全面呈现家庭在日常生活中如何应对与食品、能源相关的各类挑战。 调研覆盖多个维度，包括人口结构、食品与燃料相关决策流程，以及基本资源的可负担性与可及性。 本次调研的核心聚焦家庭能源使用情况，评估照明能源来源、电力供应可靠性，以及烹饪所用燃料类型。同时探讨家庭如何应对能源价格波动，尤其是成本上涨如何影响烹饪行为与能源选择。 除能源使用外，调研还考察了饮食多样性，重点关注受访前一日所食用的食物种类及其制备方式。 受访者分享了其对不同食物来源的依赖程度、价格变动对其饮食的影响，以及烹饪燃料可得性受限如何影响膳食筹备情况。调研设置的粮食安全模块评估了食品短缺时段、节食行为，以及应对财务与能源约束的策略。 近期全球范围内能源与食品价格均大幅飙升。此类价格上涨可能迫使弱势家庭在食品与现代能源（如电力、液化石油气、煤油等）之间做出艰难权衡，进而导致粮食安全水平下降，且更依赖木材、木炭或动物粪便等污染性较强但价格更低廉的燃料。尽管家庭能源使用与饮食结构紧密相关，但由于缺乏适配的家庭层面微观数据，学界对这一能源-食品关联背后的动态机制仍知之甚少。本探索性研究项目旨在在印度特伦甘纳邦开发并试点一套全面的调研工具，以精细化评估这一能源-食品关联关系。