Postmen help determine consumer price index

The postmen in rural areas are also collecting the prices of different food products and consumer items. This is being done under an agreement signed between the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) and the postal department to prepare consumer price index (CPI) of the rural areas, said director, postal services, Allahabad region, Krishna Kumar Yadav.

He said in rural areas, two different kinds of surveys are being conducted by the postal employees. One involves the cost survey of rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene provided to below poverty line (BPL) card holders or other customers under public distribution system (PDS).

The second is the survey of articles being sold in the selected rural areas. Yadav added that around 248 products like pulses, various milk products, oil, meat, fish, rice, wheat, cereals, corn, vegetables, fruits, sugar, honey, spices, tea, coffee, tobacco, beetle nut, fuel, shoes, cosmetics, clothes, bed sheets, mosquito net, medicines, tutor fee, sports material, phone charges, stationary, and various other domestic products and services are covered in the survey.

Giving the reasons for the involvement of rural areas in the index list, Yadav said: "CPI is a medium to find the rate of inflation. Earlier, inflation was calculated on the basis of the cost price of the products sold in the urban areas. However, around 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas and markets are flourishing in these areas as well. So, there was a need to include the cost price of the articles sold in the rural market." Survey is done every month and finally the data is uploaded on the CSO website by the postal department.

The data collection work is going in 20 selected post offices in Allahabad region. Some of them are Sewaith (Phaphamau SO), Lawayan Kalan Uparhar (TSI, SO), Kokhraj Uperhar (Bharwari SO) and Panara Gopalpur (Sarai Akil SO) in Allahabad Division, in Ghazipur (Chhawani Line SO) Chhawani Vise, (Zamania SO), Nariyaon Urf Umarganj, in Mirzapur (Kachhawa SO) Mahamalpur,

Courtesy : Times of India