Since demonetisation in 2016, about 50 lakh men have lost their jobs: Report
NEW DELHI: 50 lakh men lost their jobs in the past two years beginning November 2016, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an overnight ban on high value currency, according to a new report. The timing of the start of the decline in jobs coincides with demonetisation but no "causal link" can be established based on the available data, says the "State of Working India 2019", released Tuesday by the Centre for Sustainable Employment, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru.
The job losses are higher when women are taken into account.
"Whether or not this decline was caused by demonetisation, it is definitely a cause for concern and calls for urgent policy intervention," the report says.
It assesses that unemployment, in general, has risen steadily post 2011 and the higher educated and the young are vastly over-represented among the unemployed.
In addition to open employment among the educated, the less educated have seen job losses and reduced work opportunities over this time period. The numbers, says the report, clearly demonstrate why unemployment has emerged as the primary economic issue in the election.
A government report leaked earlier this year had said the country's unemployment rate rose to a 45-year high in 2017-18.
The National Sample Survey Office's Periodic Labour Force Survey, conducted between July 2017-June 2018, showed the unemployment rate at 6.1 percent, the highest since 1972-73. The report was withheld by the government but accessed by the Business Standard newspaper.
But NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar said the report was "not verified" and the "veracity of the data is not known".
The latest report says the decline in the labour force participation rate (LFPR) and workforce participation rate (WPR) has largely been driven by less-educated men in both urban and rural areas.
"Clearly, there is a large differential impact by level of education. This is consistent with the idea that the informal sector, where we can expect the share of less educated men to be higher, was hit hardest by demonetisation as well as the introduction of GST."
The report says joblessness is not only a problem limited to the educated sections of the labour force. "While open unemployment may still be low among the less educated, there has been a marked tendency to drop out of the labour force for this section, presumably due to loss of work opportunities," it says.
courtesy: ndtv.com
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Min. Priyank Kharge to expresses concern over implementation of VB-G Ram G
Bengaluru: Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Priyank Kharge has expressed concern over the uncertainty surrounding the implementation of the proposed VB-G Ram G scheme, stating that the MNREGA programme, which has been a lifeline for rural India for nearly two decades, appears to be facing an uncertain future.
Speaking to media, Kharge said that as March 31 draws to a close, there is no clarity on the rollout of the new scheme from April 1. He pointed out that the central government has not yet issued the necessary guidelines for implementing the scheme for rural workers and villages.
He criticised the Centre for its lack of preparedness, stating that there is no clarity on fund allocation, no final parameters for classifying gram panchayats, and key processes such as social audits have not been defined.
Kharge said the situation comes at a critical time, as summer marks a peak period for rural employment demand, when many people depend heavily on wage employment for their livelihood.
He added that reports have emerged of delays in approvals and families not receiving work despite demand.
He further alleged that the Centre’s move to shift from a statutory employment guarantee to a rule-based allocation system is already showing negative consequences.
Kharge also raised concerns over provisions such as a mandatory 60-day halt during agricultural seasons, which he said would further limit employment opportunities for rural workers.
The BJP-led central government had claimed that the new scheme would transform rural India, but in reality it is turning out to be detrimental to people’s livelihoods, he said.
“The crisis in rural India due to the stalling of MNREGA is beginning to unfold. Given the Centre’s past record in handling such situations, there is growing concern over the impact on rural livelihoods,” Kharge said.
