Inflation bugbear

It’s a rude shock to the embattled UPA Government that was already feeling cornered on the issue of galloping inflation. Disappointed by the latest double-digit figures, officials in Finance Ministry concede that there’s little they can do to arrest the trend immediately as it’s driven by high prices of commodities globally.

However, they do see a silver lining in the cloud. Says a senior bureaucrat: “The Rabi harvest of rice and wheat has been exceptionally good. Then, good monsoons will also beef up food production in the country. It should help cool food prices significantly over the next three to four months.” That’s some source of comfort for the government in what has been a losing battle against inflation so far.

—RJ