Prices of most food items have been inching up relentlessly through the past year despite

several so-called reforms in management of food supply chains. While staples like wheat
flour and rice have become marginally costlier, prices of pulses like masoor and arhar
have soared by up to 30%. Barring a few exceptions, prices of vegetables and fruits have
shot up by 20 to 50%, and for popular winter fare like peas and leafy vegetables, by
nearly 100%.
According to APMC (Azadpur) data, between January 31, 2014 and Jan 30, 2015, the
wholesale price of peas rose 106%, spinach by 94%, carrots by 89%, beans by 68%,
cabbage by 61%, brinjal by 57%, methi by 56%, bhindi and green chillies by 47%, onion
by 40% and tomato by 33%.
Unlike the dramatic spikes witnessed during the Manmohan Singh government, when
prices would increase manifold in the space of a few weeks before settling down, the
present inflation is a slow, simmering fire rising steadily over a period of months. But the
effect is the same an erosion of family budgets and, among the large number of limited
income households in Delhi, even an erosion in their nutritional intake.
This slow-burning food inflation may be one of the reasons for the quick disaffection of
poorer people in Delhi with the Modi government, as reflected in the close contest
between BJP and AAP. Just eight months ago, BJP had swept all seven Lok Sabha seats
in Delhi, getting 46% of the votes polled, with promises of fighting price rise being one of
its key attractions.