BUDGET
Budget needs to focus on local infrastructure to enable creation of jobs
Post-pandemic structure of the job market shows retrogression, with a part of the workforce going back to agriculture. This trend has acted as a drag on earnings growth of labour. Research shows that the multiplier from public investment in local infrastructure comes through MSMEs and feeds into a positive environment for job creation. That should be a focus area in the budget
BUSINESS
Budget must open a pathway to an employment policy
Budget 2024-25: India’s demographic dividend will end by 2040. We need a policy to double the share of salaried workers to 50% within 15 years. It doesn’t need more money but a conscious effort and strategising
BUSINESS
PLFS data cannot be a measure of widespread hunger and the rise in poverty
There is no doubt that policy support during the pandemic prevented widespread starvation. To what extent this support helped to sustain consumption in face of falling incomes is an important question. But the PLFS is not designed to answer this question
