When Jobs Plummet, So Will Growth

The economy is down because incomes are not growing at the bottom of the pyramid. We need more jobs with social security

- Arun Maira

The numbers are in and uncontested this time. The growth of the Indian economy, until recently celebrated as the world’s fastest, has slumped to only 5 percent. Alarm bells ringing, the government’s firefighters are out.

The government wants investors to invest more, to grow the economy to $5 trillion. With capacity utilization low, and demand falling in many sectors — automobiles, tractors, and even biscuits — the investors’ rationality is over-powering animal spirits. Economists are debating whether the Indian economy is in cyclical decline, or whether there is a deeper structural problem. The Periodic Labour Force Survey data for 2017-18 released by the National Sample Survey reveals the structural problem.

Income disparity