By IANS,
New Delhi : Wholesale prices of rice rose more than 13 percent in the past one year due to a demand-supply mismatch, says the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham).
The industry forum said the price of wheat similarly rose by about five percent.
In the study “Comparison of Wholesale Prices of Rice and Wheat in India”, Assocham said the average wholesale prices of wheat, which stood at Rs.1,167.54 per quintal in August 2008, went up to Rs.1,222.48 per quintal in August 2009, up by 4.71 percent.
“The average wholesale prices of rice during August 2008 stood at Rs.1,873.94 per quintal which rose to Rs.2,120.29 per quintal in August 2009, registering a growth of 13.15 percent,” the study said.
Wholesale wheat prices were the highest in Kerala, Karnataka, Assam, Maharashtra and Gujarat, and the least in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal.
Orissa and Jharkhand were the only states to record a decline in wheat prices, Assocham said.
In the case of rice, the highest price hike was recorded in Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur and Assam, while Delhi and its immediate surrounding areas, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa recorded a decline last month, Assocham said.
In Kerala, wholesale wheat prices rose 49 percent, and in Assam, price of rice also zoomed 49 percent.