Page 544 - ES 2020-21_Volume-1-2 [28-01-21]

Prices and Inflation 171

Transport and communication Personal care and effects

Source: NSO

DRIVERS OF INFLATION: THE PRODIGIOUS IMPACT
OF FOOD INFLATION

5.12 During 2019-20 (Apr-Dec) as well as 2020-21 (Apr-Dec), the major driver of CPI-C
inflation was the food and beverages group, though its contribution has increased to 59.0 per cent
in 2020-21 (Apr-Dec) compared to 53.7 per cent in 2019-20 (Apr-Dec). Miscellaneous group
was the second largest contributor to inflation, contributing to 26.8 per cent of overall inflation
(Figure 10). Among the sub-groups in miscellaneous group, transport and communication
contributed the most followed by personal care and effects.

Figure 10: Contribution of groups to overall CPI-C inflation in 2019-20
(Apr-Dec) and 2020-21 (Apr-Dec) in per cent

Source: NSO
5.13 Food inflation based on CFPI which remained negative from October 2018 to February
2019, showed a sharp increase since the second half of 2019, mainly due to surge in vegetable
prices, before declining in the recent months. High food inflation since March, 2020 is indicative
of supply chain bottlenecks owing to COVID-19 induced disruptions. The contribution of food