Opinion: Tomahto, Tomayto - Soaring Prices, Government In Denial

Wearing a garish gold necklace to parliament is allowed. A string of sparkling De Beers diamonds will also do. But, heaven help the Member of parliament who, a few weeks ago, wore a garland of tomatoes (and ginger) as a unique form of protest against sky-rocketing prices. Wearing tomatoes as jewellery was powerful imagery. However, the MP was admonished for doing so. In the season of Privilege Notices and suspensions, the Rajya Sabha MP from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was let off with a warning. I still have not figured out what his crime was. Which rule did he break? 

Derailing RBI's Projections

In August came confirmation of what was largely expected - a huge jump in retail and food inflation figures. Over the last two months, prices of vegetables, spices and several other food items have hit a high. The year-on-year increase in the Consumer Food Price Index in June was 4.5%, which leaped to a whopping 11.5% in July. This was primarily on the back of the inflation rate for vegetables, which witnessed a sharp increase and rose to 37% year-on-year. The inflation rate surged to 13% for cereals and products, and 13.3% for pulses and products. For milk and products, it increased to 8.3%. Spices had surged 21%. Overall, in the food and beverages segment, the increase was over 10%.

Surging food prices have had a domino effect, materially changing India's inflation outlook. India's retail inflation rose to 7.4% year-on-year in July, surpassing the upper limit of Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s tolerance band of 6%. This trend has led to the RBI upwardly revising India's Consumer Price Index inflation rate for the year from 5.1% to 5.4%. The RBI Governor has even warned that policymakers will have to stand ready to go beyond keeping a watchful eye, and deploy policy instruments if necessary.

Government In Denial

During the recently concluded monsoon session of parliament, this columnist had asked the government to provide the month-wise trend in the average prices of vegetables. On 21 July, in a written reply to the question, the Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution gave a surprising and misleading answer. The last row of the table annexed to the answer quoted prices of the 'rare' commodity that was bewildering. Titled "All-India Monthly Average Retail Prices of Tomato (Rs/kg)", the figures for 2023 were: 24.72 (January), 23.45 (February), 23.32 (March), 23.16 (April), 23.61 (May), and 32.58 (June). What is this government smoking!

Tomatoes were hovering around the double century-mark. As we write this, the prices have softened - but nowhere near what was presented on the floor of parliament. This columnist visited three vegetable markets each in Delhi and Kolkata for a reality check. It is a good case to bring a breach of privilege motion against the Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution for misleading Parliament. (Spare the feeble Minister of State. His seniors have turned this into an art form). 

In the last few years, real-time wages are falling and unemployment is rising. The tomato, as a visual mnemonic, summarises the situation.  

It is believed that the Portuguese were the first to introduce the tomato in India in the early 16th century. Referred to as the yellow or pink apple, natives called it the red berry or the vilayti begun (foreign brinjal). It acquired this name as it was mainly consumed by the British (vilayti). In fact, the French used to call tomatoes pommes d'amour (love apples). Going by current market prices, perhaps the most apt name for tomatoes was coined by the Italians, who used to call tomatoes pomi d'oro, meaning golden apples. 

P.S. This comic strip created by RK Laxman thirty years ago is as relevant today as it was back then.

(Derek O'Brien, MP, leads the Trinamool Congress in the Rajya Sabha.)

Additional Research: Anushtup Haldar

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author.