WPI inflation surges to 16-month high of 3.36 pc in June on costlier vegetables
New Delhi (PTI): Wholesale inflation in the country surged to a 16-month high of 3.36 per cent in June on account of rise in prices of food articles, especially vegetables and manufactured items.
This was the fourth consecutive month when inflation witnessed an upward journey. The wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation was 2.61 per cent in May. It was (-) 4.18 per cent in June 2023.
Wholesale inflation had touched a high of 3.85 per cent in February 2023.
"Positive rate of inflation in June, 2024 is primarily due to increase in prices of food articles, manufacture of food products, crude petroleum & natural gas, mineral oils, other manufacturing etc," the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a statement on Monday.
As per the data, inflation in food articles rose 10.87 per cent in June, as against 9.82 per cent in May.
Inflation in vegetables was 38.76 per cent during June, up from 32.42 per cent in May. Onion inflation was at 93.35 per cent, while potato was 66.37 per cent in the month under review. Pulses inflation rose 21.64 per cent in June.
During the month, inflation in other food items like fruits stood at 10.14 per cent, cereals at 9.27 per cent, and milk at 3.37 per cent.
The upmove in the WPI inflation in June 2024 was broad-based, driven by all the major segments except fuel and power, ICRA Chief Economist Aditi Nayar said.
Looking ahead, she said, the headline WPI inflation is expected to dip to about 2 per cent in July 2024, driven by a favourable base, as well as some cooling in global commodity prices.
With regard to oil prices, she said, the average price of the Indian basket of crude oil has been quite volatile in July 2024 so far, on the back of supply-demand mismatches, witnessing a month-on-month rise (USD 86.6/bbl up to July 11).
Higher crude oil prices might exert an upward pressure to the headline WPI inflation in the ongoing month, she added.
In the fuel and power basket, inflation stood at 1.03 per cent, marginally lower than 1.35 per cent in May.
However, price rise in crude petroleum & Natural gas was in double digit at 12.55 per cent during the month.
In manufactured products, inflation was at 1.43 per cent in June, higher than 0.78 per cent in May.
The rise in June WPI was in line with the retail inflation data for the month. Retail inflation rose to a four-month high of 5.1 per cent in June, data released last week showed.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) mainly takes into account retail inflation while framing the monetary policy.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
