According to a labour bureau statement, retail inflation for farm and rural workers has eased in May. The point-to-point inflation rate based on the consumer price index-agricultural labourers and consumer price index-rural labourers stood at 5.99% and 5.84%, respectively. This is a significant drop from April 2023, where the inflation rate for both categories was at 6.50% and 6.52%, respectively.
Food inflation stood at 6.31% and 6.07% in May 2023, compared to 6.67% and 6.52% in April 2023, respectively, and 5.44% and 5.51% during the same month last year. The All-India Consumer Price Index Number for Agricultural Labourers and Rural Labourers in May 2023 increased by six and five points, respectively, to stand at 1186 points and 1197 points.
The rise in general index of Agricultural Labourers and Rural Labourers can be attributed mainly to the food group to the extent of 5.29 points and 4.72 points, respectively, mainly due to the increase in prices of rice, pulses, milk, meat goat, chillies dry, garlic, ginger, vegetables, and fruits, among others.
The rise/fall in the index varied from state to state, with Tamil Nadu topping the index table with 1371 points, while Himachal Pradesh stood at the bottom with 918 points for Agricultural Labourers. Tamil Nadu also topped the Rural Labourers’ index table with 1360 points, with Himachal Pradesh with 968 points at the bottom.
Andhra Pradesh state experienced the maximum increase in the Consumer Price Index Numbers for both Agricultural Labourers and Rural Labourers, with 17 points each, mainly due to the rise in the prices of rice, jowar, ragi, pulses, green/dry chillies, onion, vegetables, and fruits, among others. On the other hand, the maximum decrease in the Consumer Price Index Numbers for Agricultural Labourers was noticed in the Assam State while for Rural Labourers, it was in the Odisha State, mainly due to the fall in the prices of rice, ragi, mustard oil, fish-fresh, onion, chillies green, among others.
