Inflation could be cooling off in recent months with overall consumer price inflation figures at a benign 4.87 per cent in April 2015 over April 2014. But prices of several goods on the household budget are showing no signs of letting up. Many items that constitute the Consumer Price Index such as milk and products, pulses , snacks and sweets, fuel and light and health are 6-9.5 per cent pricier than a year ago. Lokeshwarri SK finds out how rising prices are affecting people
Hemalatha Ambalavanan is an engineer who, after living in many countries, including the US and Singapore, shifted to India in 2007.
With the prices of household consumables surging in the last few years, she is having a tough time juggling the family budget to take care of all the needs of her family, which includes two children — a daughter in class 10 and a son in class 7.
“Let me explain how steeply prices are moving up using the example of Kissan jam,” she says.
“In January 2007, a bottle of Kissan jam cost ₹50. It now costs more than ₹100. There is a sharp jump in the electricity bill every couple of years. The price of domestic LPG is also rising steadily.”
“Conveyance is another area where money is spent ever so quickly. Entertainment too is getting pricier; a visit to a multiplex costs almost ₹1,000 if the cost of food and ticket is taken into account.”
What about the school fee of children? “There has been no drastic increase in school fee over the last three years. But, of late, the school charges an annual fee every year, almost ₹7,000. School books printed by NCERT are under cost control. But non-NCERT books cost quite a pile.” The fact that increase in family income has not been in step with rising prices further aggravates the situation.
How does she cope? “Buying vegetables and groceries from a wholesale market helps bring down the grocery bill significantly.” The Ambalavanans have also cut down their cinema outings. But Hemalatha feels there is little else that can be done. The needs of growing children have to be met. Milk and milk products are staples whose consumption cannot be reduced.