In both rural and urban areas, the proportion of Muslim households living in pucca houses is lower than the total population. Almost half the Muslim households in India lack access to toilets; this proportion is highest in rural areas. This results in sanitation problem. On the other hand, one in every five Muslim households has flush toilets of its own which is marginally better than that of the Indian population. In urban areas, however, the proportion of Muslim households who have flush toilets is much lower than the proportion for the whole urban population. The use of electricity for lighting is less among Muslim than the all-India average. The disadvantage is quite large in Muslim concentrated villages; the share of villages with no electricity increases substantially as the size of the village falls and the share of Muslim population rises.

Muslims have the lease access to tap water compared to all other socio-religious communities. Muslim households are poorly placed in using fuel for cooking purposes. This disparity is especially wide in urban areas. So the Muslims rank “poorly in water availability, electrification and cooking fuel facilities”. (p.148). The Gopal Singh Committee (1983) also found in its extensive of ghetto areas in several cities dominated by the Muslims, other minorities and the Scheduled Castes. It found that only Muslim areas were deprived of basic amenities which were found available in non-Muslim ghettos. Historically deprived groups have exhibited lower levels of living in economic terms including levels of consumption. The all India Mean Per Capita Expenditure (MPCE) for the year 2004-05 was Rs. 712 with a high of Rs. 1023 for H-General followed by Rs. 646 for H-OBCs, Rs. 635 for Muslims and Rs. 520 for the Scs/STs. Thus relative deprivation of the Muslim community in terms of consumption expenditure is much higher in urban areas than in rural areas. By estimating Head Count Ratio in 2004-05, 61st Round of the NSSO found that SCs/Sts together are the most poor with an HCR of 35% followed by the Muslims who record the second highest incidence of poverty with 31% people below the poverty line. Below are given two data state-wise Urban and rural poverty incidence across socio-religious communities.