Farm, Rural Inflation Rises Slightly in December

New Delhi, Jan 21 (PTI) Retail inflation for farm and rural workers rose slightly by 0.04 per cent and 0.11 per cent, respectively, in December 2025 compared to the preceding month amid firming up of certain food items, showed government data released on Wednesday.

The pace of increase in retail prices, measured in terms of Consumer Price Index-Agricultural Workers (CPI-AL) and Consumer Price Index-Rural Workers (CPI-RL), was negative at (-) 0.66 per cent and (-) 0.47, respectively, in November 2025, a labour ministry statement said.

Food inflation in December 2025 stood at (-) 1.80 per cent for farm workers and (-) 1.73 per cent for rural labourers.

In contrast, the two respective figures in November were at (-) 2.95 per cent and (-) 2.70 per cent, according to the data.


In December 2025, the All-India Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers decreased by 0.28 points to 137.12, while the index for Rural Labourers decreased by 0.27 points, reaching 137.03.

The Food Index decreased by 0.70 points each for Agricultural Labourers (AL) and Rural Labourers (RL) last month.

The Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour & Employment, released the latest consumer price index numbers for agricultural labourers and rural labourers, considering 2019 as the base year.

These indices are based on data collected from a set of 787 sample villages across 34 states/Union Territories.