The last few months have seen prices of practically all goods and commodities go through the roof. An impending drought, a failing crop, lack of supply to meet the rising demand. . . there has been many a reason thrown at us to justify the price rise.
That was when inflation was way below zero. Now, it has just poked its head into positive territory: meaning, prices could rise further. The government, meanwhile, says it is addressing the situation and taking measures to control runaway prices.
With prices of most essential commodities doubling in the last twelve months or so, Indian households have had to cut corners to make two ends meet. Even affluent classes have been taking it a bit easy. And with the festive season upon us, the customary warmth and cheer that pervade the nation seem to be palpably missing.
With most of the festivals (Navratri, Id, Dussehra, Diwali) knocking at the door, we spoke to a few people about how they planned to celebrate and what are they doing to cope with the soaring prices.
For Suruchi, a manager at an investment banking firm in Mumbai, monthly grocery bills have jumped to about Rs 6,000, compared to Rs 4,500 in the last several months.
She says that prices of vegetables, meat and bakery products have also risen in the last few months. The cost of sugar has almost doubled to Rs 35-40 per kg and pulses cost a whopping Rs 85-100 a kilo.
"Obviously, this would affect our Diwali celebrations," adds Suruchi. "Since the past several years we have been buying sweets as Diwali gifts for our relatives, colleagues and friends. Dry fruit sweets are the most expensive and I wonder what the prices would be this year," she shudders.
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