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The retail inflation rate for farm and rural workers fell to 5.96 per cent and 6.08 per cent, respectively, in August compared to 6.17 per cent and 6.20 per cent registered in July, the government said on Friday.  

The All-India Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPI-AL) and Rural Labourers (CPI-RL) registered an increase of 7 points each in August 2024, reaching levels of 1,297 and 1,309, respectively.

The CPI-AL and CPI-RL were 1,290 points and 1,302 points, respectively, in July, according to the Labour Ministry statement.

"The year-on-year inflation rates based on CPI-AL and CPI–RL for this month were recorded at 5.96 per cent and 6.08 per cent, compared to 7.37 per cent and 7.12 per cent in August 2023. The corresponding figures for July 2024 were 6.17 per cent for CPI-AL and 6.20 per cent for CPI-RL," as per the statement.

The retail inflation rates for farm and rural workers were 7.02 per cent and 7.04 per cent, respectively, in June this year, according to the Labour Ministry.

The ease in inflation for rural labour comes as a welcome sign as it leaves more money in the hands of the workers to improve their living standards. The easing in the rural inflation rate for rural labour is in line with the overall decline in India’s consumer price inflation.

Meanwhile, the year-on-year inflation rate (3.65 per cent), based on the All India Consumer Price Index (CPI), for the month of August, was the second lowest in the last five years, below the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) 4 per cent inflation target. Corresponding inflation rates for rural and urban areas were 4.16 per cent and 3.14 per cent in August, respectively.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has said that the Central Bank will go a rate cut to spur growth once the inflation rate shows a durable alignment with the 4 per cent target rate.