Unseasonable rains pose risk to crops, inflation, says FM Arun Jaitley

India's unseasonable rainfall has damaged some crops and could stoke food price inflation and some shortages, though surplus stocks of foodgrains would help the country cope comfortably, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said.

"The damage to the crops and its consequential effects would be there. It could impact on inflation. It could impact on certain (food) shortages," Jaitley told television channel CNN-IBN on Saturday.

"But then since we've surplus as far as the foodgrains are concerned, we can cope ... with the issue of shortage comfortably," he said.

Heavy and untimely rain in northern and central India's wheat bowl earlier this month is expected to trim output from the new season crop.

Underscoring the risk of a rebound in inflationary pressures from rising commodity prices, consumer price inflation (CPI) in February edged up for the third straight month, mainly driven by food prices.

(Reuters)