New Delhi, April 17: India’s annual food inflation dropped marginally to 17.22 percent for the week ended April 3 from 17.7 percent a week before even as prices of milk, fruits and lentils rose during the period under review, data showed Thursday.
Data on the wholesale price index released by the commerce and industry ministry showed the index for food articles rose 1.4 percent during the week under review. The index for non-food articles rose 0.1 percent.
Taking into account the year as a whole, the prices of wheat, lentils, fruit, milk, oil seeds and non-food articles like fibre and fuel were ruling sharply higher than the levels seen last year. However rice, onion and potato became cheaper.
Following are the prices of some essential food items over the 52-week period:
– Pulses: 32.55 percent
– Potato: (-)23.71 percent
– Milk: 22.21 percent
– Wheat: 12.42 percent
– Cereals: 10.21 percent
– Onion: (-)2.50 percent
– Fruits: 11.96 percent
– Rice: 8.45 percent
The central bank has initiated measures to tighten its monetary policy by hiking key rates in a bid to suck out excess liquidity from the system and tame inflationary expectations.
–IANS