The Foundation for Agrarian Studies conducted a Rapid Assessment Survey to study the impact of Covid-19 on rural India. This Survey is based on telephone interviews of 43 informants from 21 villages across 10 States of India. Some details of the survey can be found here. The preliminary findings from the survey have been published in the Frontline magazine.
“The respondents,” notes the article, “represented a cross-section of village society — from large landlords to agricultural and manual workers, from ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers to individuals engaged in large and small businesses and other non-agricultural activities. The questions sought broadly to understand how a three-week lockdown period, which sought to pare down economic activity to a minimum, impacted the life, work and economic status of rural families.”
The article underlines the need for the state to provide adequate public support through cash and food transfers and employment generation while maintaining individual distancing. It also highlights that the impact of this crisis is not uniform. It varies across agro-ecological regions, and socio-economic classes.
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Ebook of the Frontline issue can be found here.
Sudha is an Administrative Assistant of the Foundation. She assists the administrative division of the Foundation and also has taken part in fieldwork organised by the Foundation.
