Veg, non-veg meal prices surged in Nov due to high onion and tomato prices: Report

Mumbai, Dec 6 (PTI) There has been a month-on-month rise in cost of a typical veg as well as non-veg thali or a meal in November largely due to soaring onion and tomato prices, a domestic rating agency said in a report on Wednesday.

The uptick was attributable to a substantial 58 per cent and 35 per cent on-month increase in onion and tomato prices, respectively, Crisil MI&A Research said in its report.

The rise in onion and tomato prices was prompted by festive demand and lower output in the Kharif season due to erratic rainfall conditions.

In November, the cost of representative home-cooked veg and non-veg thalis increased 10 per cent and 5 per cent on a month-on-month basis, respectively, the report said.

On a month-on-month basis, the cost of the non-veg thali increased at a slower pace than that of the veg thali because of a marginal 1-3 per cent decline in prices of broilers, which account for 50 per cent of the non-veg thali cost, it stated.

The cost of the veg thali rose 9 per year-on-year, driven by a 93 per cent and 15per cent increase in onion and tomato prices, respectively.

Prices of pulses, which account for 9 per cent of the veg thali cost, also increased 21 per cent year-on-year, the report added.

The average cost of preparing a thali at home is calculated based on input prices prevailing in North, South, East and West India.

The monthly change reflects the impact on the common man's expenditure. The data also reveals the ingredients (cereals, pulses, broilers, vegetables, spices, edible oil and cooking gas) driving the change in the cost of the thali. PTI