New Delhi, December 30: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today indicated more steps to check rising prices as food inflation surged to a 10-week high of 14.44 per cent while pegging the overall inflation rate at 6.5 per cent by this fiscal end, a bit higher than projected earlier.
The high inflation rate is not due to (statistical technicality called) base effect and is real, the Finance Minister told reporters here.
“We are looking into it. So far as onion is concerned, we have taken care of it… but the fluctuation in milk, fruit, vegetables and certain commodities have contributed to the inflation,” Mukherjee said.
The extent of price rise could be gauged from the fact that food inflation rose to 14.44 per cent on a high increase of 21.29 per cent a year ago.
–Agencies