Anti-inflationary steps to continue next fiscal: FM

On a day when the government came under severe attack in Parliament on spiralling prices, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said fiscal measures have been taken to cool down inflation and that several of them will continue in the next fiscal too.

Several of these measures have cooled down the rate of price increase in cereals and pulses, Mukherjee told Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

"The government has taken several measures to check inflation in food items. . . several anti-inflationary measures will continue during 2010-11," he said in a written reply.

Giving details, Mukherjee said the government has reduced import duties on rice, wheat, pulses, edible crude oil and sugar to zero, cut import duties on refined and hydrogenated oils and vegetables oils, allowed import of raw sugar at zero duty up to this calendar year-end.

Besides, import of raw sugar has been opened to private trade up to December 31, 2010 for being processed by domestic factories on job basis, 2 million tonne wheat and 1 million tonnes rice have been allocated to states for distribution to retail consumers, the minister said.

Mukherjee said inflation in overall cereals and pulses have declined from 14.77 per cent and 47.82 per cent, respectively on January 2 to 12.2 per cent and 38.04 per cent, respectively on February 6.

The issue of price rise sent Parliament into a pandemonium with the Opposition seeking discussion under rules that entail voting. Both houses were adjourned for the day on Tuesday.

Inflation has already crossed Reserve Bank of India's projection of 8.5 per cent and food inflation nears 18 per cent.