Food inflation rises to 8.55 per cent

Food inflation shot up to 8.55 per cent for the week ended May 14, the highest level in four weeks, as prices of fruits, cereals and protein-based items escalated.Food inflation, as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), was on a declining trajectory for the previous three weeks. The figure for the seven-day period under review was 1.08 percentage points higher than the 7.47 per cent inflation rate recorded in the previous week.

59 pc of PDS grains do not reach households: WB report

Despite India spending over two per cent of GDP in social protection schemes, their returns in terms of poverty reduction are yet to reach full potential, a World Bank report has said, pointing to “high leakages” in PDS and “uneven implementation” of MNREGA across states.The report, the first comprehensive review of India’s social welfare and anti-poverty initiatives, said about 60 per cent of grains released by government under public distribution system did not reach households in 2004-05.