Wages and prices

Dealing with the causes of rural distress

A study of rural wages over the past five years in The Indian Express, using the Labour Bureau data, came to some worrying conclusions. Rural wages, both for non-farm and farm employment, have grown only 0.5 per cent annually in real terms over the five-year term of the National Democratic Alliance government. Altogether, rural wage growth, measured year-to-year in December each year, has been greater than rural consumer price inflation in only three of the five years. The trends are similar if only non-farm employment is considered. This is a serious sign of increasing farm distress, and needs careful attention