New Delhi: Blaming hoarders for the rise in food inflation, finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said there is no panic situation” and asked the states to take measures to crackdown on hoarding and black marketing to rein in prices.
When production of food items is higher than last year and still prices rise, then it means that intermediaries are keeping the stock somewhere, Jaitley said at a conference on food inflation.
He said the test of the good governance is how to de-hoard the stock kept by intermediaries into the market to rein in prices. “This is the biggest challenge.
The minister asked the state governments to assess the problem as action taken after price rise creates panic in the market. Noting that prices of crude oil have increased due to tension in Iraq, Jaitley said there are, however, indications of softening of prices.
He was addressing the conference of state food and consumer affairs ministers to discuss measures to check food inflation. The meeting was also attended by food minister Ram Vilas Paswan and agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh.
Jaitley also mentioned that prices of onion, potato, rice, pulses and milk have increased because of different reasons. Inflation rose to five-month high to 6.01 per cent in May due to rise in prices of essential items like vegetables, fruits and cereals.
He also asked the state governments to set an example of good governance as there is no reason for price rise when production is at a record level and supplies are adequate. Emphasising on the need for coordinated efforts to control prices, Jaitley said both the Centre and states should prepare a joint-action plan in this regard.
The finance minister highlighted measures taken by the Centre in the last few weeks including additional allocation of 5 million tonnes of rice for poor and imposition of minimum export price on onion and potato.
Bureau Report
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