New consumer price indices peg inflation at 6%

The government on Friday launched a new series measuring inflation which suggested Consumer Price Index based inflation at 6 per cent for January this year.

The figure was arrived based on a comparison with the annual all-India CPI index average for the whole of 2010.

"Since these indices are being introduced for the first time, annual inflation rates have not been compiled," the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said.

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According to new series, all-India Comsumer Price Index stood at 106 (provisional figure) for January 2011 taking the base at an annualised level of 100 for the entire year.

Though inflation in terms of CPI based on the new computation stands at six per cent, the ministry said that actual rate of inflation would be available only after a period of one year.

While the rural CPI indices stood at 107, CPI urban stood at 104 during the month under review.

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Releasing the new series, the government said for a period of one year, the practice of giving the figures in the present form without quoting the inflation rate would be continued 'till the series gets stabilised' and adequate timely receipt of price data is achieved.

It added that these are provisional figures and would be revised subsequently.

The ministry further said all the states have not been included for the new calculations as figures from some of them are yet to be compiled.

These consumer indices have been released for five major groups -- food, beverages and tobacco; fuel and light; housing; clothing, bedding and footwear; and miscellaneous.