Srinagar, Apr 14: Jammu and Kashmir has recorded a 7.59 per cent rate of inflation in March.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s report on monthly retail inflation has come on the heels of CMIE’s report which has pegged the unemployment rate in UT at 25 percent.
As per MOSPI’s report, J&K has an inflation rate of 7.59 percent which is even higher than the national inflation rate of 6.95 percent.
The Ukraine war is considered to be a major factor behind the rise in retail inflation. However, in Jammu and Kashmir, there is no breather for inhabitants of the Union Territory as J&K continues to face inflationary pressure due to its dependence on outside supplies.
The major factor attributing to the rising costs in the UT is heavy dependence on imports from other places. J&K on average imports goods and food items worth Rs 40,000 crore annually from other states.
The ever increasing petroleum prices have become a major reason for the escalating inflation in the state, given the heavy transportation costs and tough terrain. With around 52 percent state and central taxes on fuel, the prices of petrol and diesel have shot up.
India’s annual retail inflation shot up to a 17-month high in March while factory output contracted sequentially in February, complicating policy choices for the central bank.
The data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on Tuesday showed that the retail inflation rate rose to 6.95 per cent in March from a year ago, remaining above the tolerance limit of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the third straight month. The Index of Industrial Production (IIP), on the other hand, grew 1.7 per cent on an annual basis in February but contracted 4.7 per cent month on month, signalling that economic revival is yet to find a strong footing.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation was led by the edible oils (18.79 per cent), vegetables (11.64 per cent), meat and fish (9.63 per cent), footwear and clothing (9.4 per cent), and fuel and light (7.52 per cent) segments.
Core inflation, which excludes the volatile food and fuel items, jumped to a 10-month high of 6.29 per cent in March from 5.96 per cent in the previous month.
Indian manufacturers are running out of capacity to absorb rising input costs, with an increasing number passing it along to consumers in an economy already grappling with Asia’s third-fastest inflation and an uneven recovery.