85 per cent daily wagers in Ahmedabad hit by lockdown: Survey

Ahmedabad, May 8 () At least 85 per cent of dailywagers in Gujarat's Ahmedabad city have lost their regularincome during the COVID-19 lockdown, a survey conducted by theIndian Institute of Management here revealed.

The nationwide lockdown, which has been in place sinceMarch to contain the spread of coronavirus, has renderedseveral unskilled labourers and daily wagers jobless.

The IIM-A conducted the survey among 500 householdsin the city that earned less than 19,500 per month, therelease here stated.

"At least 85 per cent households were not earningregular incomes anymore and most have lost or will lose theirentire income (in the lockdown)," the survey data revealed.

According to the study, most households have losttheir monthly incomes (in the range of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000for a large section).

About 54 per cent of the 500 families said they had tocut down from three meals to two meals a day, while 60 percent revealed that they did not have enough food rations tosurvive the lockdown.

The survey was carried out between March 24 and April9, among families of bus, autorickshaw drivers, daily wagers,plumbers and vegetable vendors, who largely depend on theirdaily earnings.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers fromIIM-A, headed by professor Ankur Sarin, the release stated. PDARU ARU