Data-dependent policy

Consumption survey will fill important gaps

The Indian economy was slowing even before the pandemic disrupted activity across the board. Although it is now recovering from the pandemic-induced disruption, employment and income have been severely affected over the past two years. The fact that India’s fiscal intervention during the pandemic was also limited compared to some of the other large economies, the disruption is likely to have affected consumption significantly. The distribution of free foodgrain, however, was a vital intervention that helped a large number of households. The state of household consumption would be known only after the results of a new consumer expenditure survey, reported