Friday, September 18, 2015

Upheaval by the Inflation

According to a latest update, people are seen to be crying their eyes out while cutting onions. And it is not just because of the Sulfenic acid. The price of onions is apparently what is driving the middle class to tears. While the onions, tomatoes and pulses keep fluctuating and getting normal, what we as a user fail to notice sometimes is the gradual increase in costs. Household articles, groceries, public transport etc. is way more expensive than what it was few years back. The thing is we get so engrossed in our everyday day lives that we forget to sit back and see the happenings around us. Moreover the concept of super market shopping deters us to actually check the price of the stuff we blindly toss into our shopping baskets.

Picture Courtesy - blog.doctoroz.com
I had a revelation recently when while ordering Aashirwaad aata from my local vendor on phone. I asked him to quickly send across Rs 35 wala 1 KG bag of aata, he quickly corrected me to say its for Rs 46 and not 35! I actually started caring about these things when I first started cooking and buying my own groceries (roughly some four years back). At the very start the aashirwaad aata was probably costing Rs 35 and the same cost is somehow just truck on my mind. Blame the supermarket shopping for this! While I waiting for the Bhaiya to bring over my aata I did a quick recap of the things whose prices have rose right in front of my eyes. A few examples from the formulated list is presented for your analysis below.

SNo
Item
Before Price (2011)
After Price (2015)
Percentage increase
1
Auto Meter (Mumbai)
Rs 12
Rs 18
50%
2
Aashirwaad
Rs 35
Rs 46
31.42%
3
Amul Butter
Rs 24
Rs 32
33.33%
4
Amul Cow Milk
Rs 15
Rs 22
46.66%
5
Mutton
Rs 260
Rs 440
69.23%

These are just a few of the things I remembered and the numbers are definitely scary. Inflation is fine as long as our salaries also increase with the same percentage and curve. Sadly in most of the jobs it is not the case. So we the mango people continue to bear the brunt of the huge hole in our pocket after the 5th of every month. And this is only considering the fact that you really only on home cooked simple meals. God save you if you are fond of eating or drinking out. Not only will the food and drinks be overpriced (A drink like Old Monk will also be sold at two times its price which by the way is Rs 100) the additional cost of VAT and service tax will increase your bill amount by atleast 30%, if not more!

Picture Coutesy - www.telegraph.co.uk

 I salute people with families, children, their education, clothes, food, bills… the list is endless. Just like our expenses and woes.
 *Long Sigh*

Love:
Sepo

5 comments:

  1. It gets so difficult for the Aam Insaan and more so, when you live alone in a big metro city like Mumbai. How the commoners gonna make both ends meet? Hope the Government is able to put some control since a high inflation rate is bad without growth! The economist in me makes me wonder where the price spiral will lead us to, the impending crisis and what's not. Good you've put the graphics.

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  2. Definitely agree with your analysis in this post Sneha.

    I've had similar experiences with prices of regularly purchased items. I don't normally check individual prices while buying but at home when I browse through the bills, I'll be surprised why I ended up paying a premium price for a product which used to be economical before.

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    1. Just revisited this post to mention something. The other day I went shopping to buy groceries and I got reminded of this blog post. I was vigilant and didn't make the mistake of picking a wrong product. I guess we all learn from our mistakes and turn better!! I think being in control of how much you 'earn', 'spend' and 'save' is the key for a balanced life :)

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  3. This post is really nice and great. Thanks for it and keep updating.

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