The Finance Minister has asked state governments to take stern action against hoarders to rein in prices of essential commodities. Addressing the state Food Ministers Conference in New Delhi today, Arun Jaitley said that hoarders are taking advantage of the forecast of below normal monsoon. Mr Jaitley said, the Centre will extend all support to states to book the hoarders.

Stating that prices of some food items increase every year during the July-December period due to hoarding, the Minister asked the states to assess the problem, as action taken after price rise creates panic in the market.

The Finance Minister said, onion prices are lower than last year and there is no panic situation. He also mentioned that prices of onion, potato, rice, pulses and milk have increased because of different reasons.

On the 2nd of this month, the Government had further hiked the minimum export price of onion to 500 Dollars per metric tonne to improve domestic supply.

Noting that prices of crude oil have increased due to tension in Iraq, Mr Jaitley said there are, however, indications of softening of prices.
Inflation rose to a five-month high to 6.01 per cent in May due to rise in prices of essential items like vegetables, fruits and cereals.

The Food Ministers Conference is deliberating on steps to prevent hoarding of kitchen staples besides plans for distribution of specific essential items through public channels. The meeting is also reviewing the Agricultural Produce Market Committee Act for creating a national common market for food items with no barriers to internal trade.