Can You Run a Family with Just Rs 100? E-Rickshaw Drivers of Jamugurihat Asks

Jamugurihat, Assam: Over 118 e-rickshaw drivers of Jamugurihat in Assam are staring at a dark future. These drivers, all young men, mostly educated were earning anywhere between Rs 1000-1200 a day. But with COVID lockdown restrictions in place, on some days if they are lucky they are earning Rs 100 a day but on most days they just keep waiting for passengers and by the end of the day they end up earning nothing.

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"Many of our fellow drivers have stopped coming out. There is no point in waiting endlessly. There have been so many days that we have not earned even 100 rupees. Many are staying at home, trying to do whatever else they can to support the family. It will be really helpful if the government could extend some kind of help," one of the drivers said.

Also Read[In Covid-Hit India, Tens Of Millions Fall Into Poverty]

The Assam government has set up a high-level committee under state Finance Minister Ajanta Neog to find ways of giving jobs of one lakh unemployed youth. Departments have been asked to identify the vacancies, the committee's report is expected to be submitted in a month.

According to Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data, Assam's unemployment rate in April 2020 was 11.1 per cent. Almost 70 lakh jobs were lost in April this year across the country. The unemployment rate for India in April this year shot up to 8 per cent from 6.5 per cent in March. April saw the maximum number of job losses in the last four months.

Another interesting report by the World Bank has brought to light the sharp rural-urban divide in income. The survey showed that the income decline for low-income rural households was as high as 56 per cent compared to low-income urban households hit by 29.5 per cent and high-income rural households impacted by 39.5 per cent.

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