Centre Calls State Food Ministers Meet On Food Inflation On Jul 7

29 June, New Delhi

The Centre will hold a meeting of State Food Ministers on 7th of next month to chalk out strategies to tackle the spiralling prices of pulses and other essential food items in the backdrop of possible deficient rains this year.

The day-long meeting is likely to be chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and presided over by both Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh.

Paswan said that the meeting will discuss ways to control unreasonable increase in prices of some commodities like pulses. The meeting will also deliberate on measures to prevent hoarding and review reforms undertaken under the existing Agricultural Produce Market Committee Act.

Besides, it will discuss the likely poor monsoon situation during the July-August period and ways to prevent spike in food inflation.

Pulses prices have sharply risen in most parts of the country. To rein in prices, the government has tendered import of five thousand tonnes of tur dal and is expected to float another bid for import of five thousand tonnes of urad.

Besides, the government is considering import of some quantities of onion to boost domestic supply till the arrival of new kharif crop from mid-September.