Rural wages have reduced dramatically since 2014, making it a period of distress according to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). At this rate, Modi’s dream of doubling farmers’ income by 2022 seems like a tall order.
“During the last 10 year period, a high growth phase in rural wages from 2007-08 to 2012-13 was followed by a phase of significant deceleration,” said the RBI report, released last week. [...]
Inflation turned out to be a double whammy. After November 2014, there was the gap between the rise in prices and growth in wages narrowed, further impacting the purchasing power of Indian farmers. [...]
The grim situation has also driven about 12,000 farmers to suicide every year since 2013. In the last few years, farmers have made several desperate attempts to attract the government’s attention. Last year, there were prolonged protests in New Delhi, where farmers from Tamil Nadu consumed their own excreta in a show of desperation. In March this year, about 35,000 protesting farmers from the drought-hit areas of Maharashtra walked about 180 km over six days to reach Mumbai, the country’s financial capital, seeking loan waivers and land ownership.
No comments:
Post a Comment