Can rising food inflation help India's languishing rural economy

A study shows that a 10% increase in the price realised by farmers directly raise their incomes by 13 per cent and had a large favourable effect on production as well

Earlier this month, the ministry of consumer affairs presented in a snapshot Parliament, of the retail price of 22 food items that it tracks on a daily basis from centres across the country, through its well- laid-out network of data collectors and field staff.

The snapshot showed that between January and early December this year, the retail price of not even one of the 22 food items declined.

In fact, each and every one of them rose, with packed Vanaspati and soy oil becoming more expensive by a mere two per cent at one end of the spectrum, and onions