Vegetable inflation can have far-reaching consequences on various stakeholders. For consumers, especially those from lower-income groups, rising vegetable prices can lead to a decrease in purchasing power and a higher cost of living. And when the lower income groups are affected, the middle class is affected too. A phuchkawala and the prices of phuchkas in Guwahati can be an easy example. Recently there has been an increase in the prices of phuchkas across Guwahati. For Rs. 10 three and at some places four phuchkas can be purchased which was earlier five or six for Rs. 10. The reason is increasing prices of onions and potatoes. Onion costs Rs. 50 per KG and potato Rs 45 to Rs. 50 per KG.
These revised prices of phuchkas will not come down even if the prices of onion and potatoes do. In some food joints, five phuchkas cost Rs. 80 to Rs. 100 and it will remain the same or else further increase. So, whenever vegetable prices increase it gives an opportunity to street vendors, food joints, restaurants and even hotels to increase the price of many food items and the prices thereafter are not reduced even if the prices of the main ingredients come down. A key component of overall inflation in any country is vegetable inflation and can have a significant impact on consumers, especially those with lower incomes. In India, vegetables like onions, tomatoes and potatoes have a weightage of 7.46 per cent in the overall Consumer Price Index (CPI), which tracks the prices of a host of goods and services to determine the overall consumer inflation in the country. So, in Guwahati, the price of phuchka can be the barometer of vegetable inflation.