Grocery expenditure of Indian families increased by 19%

According to the findings of a survey conducted by a research institute, even though it is being claimed that the prices of goods have come down in the last few months, the amount that every family has to spend on essential goods including grocery has increased by 19 percent in the last two years.

The organisation had conducted such a survey in the quarter ending March 31, 2024 and earlier in the quarter ending March 31, 2022 and on comparing the findings of both the surveys, spending on essential commodities had gone up by 19 per cent in the March 2024 quarter

The comparison between these two surveys is very important, as the RBI started raising interest rates in April, 2022 when the inflation rate was 7.8 percent, and since then interest rates have increased by a total of 2.5 percent. And even now the interest rate is only 6.5 percent. As a result, the inflation rate is now claimed to be 4.7 percent, but Indian household spending on groceries has increased by 19 percent. According to the survey findings, the largest share of the total expenditure made by any household is spent on groceries. The share of expenditure on groceries is 24 percent. Household spending on groceries has increased by Rs. 2,000 in the March 2022 quarter. Currently, one in every three households in India is facing severe financial difficulty. In both the 2022 and 2024 surveys, 34 percent of the respondents said that it has become very difficult for them to make ends meet. However, what is noteworthy is that 8 per cent of the respondents in the 2022 survey said they are able to manage their finances well and do not experience any difficulties. The percentage of respondents saying so has increased to 16 per cent in the 2024 survey.