Government rolls out subsidised ‘Bharat Atta’ ahead of Diwali, to be available at 2,000 outlets

As prices of the commodity increased, the government of India on November 6, launched ‘Bharat Atta’, which will be made available across the country at subsidised prices. A total of 2.5 lakh metric tonnes of wheat has been allocated to several central government agencies for Rs 21.5 per kg, who will turn this into atta and sell it for Rs 27.5 per kg.

“The government of India has taken several steps for the welfare of both farmers and consumers. We have procured food commodities every time we saw the people of the country struggle due to rising prices and have sold them at subsidised raised to benefit the consumers,” Minister of Food and Public Distribution, Piyush Goyal said while launching the product.

“We did the same with tomatoes and helped bring prices down. We then launched Bharat Dal and are doing the same with onions,” he added.

Amid persistently high inflation, the Department of Consumer Affairs has brought in several policy measures ranging from export duties to bans, to contain domestic inflation.

The latest step comes at a time when atta (wheat flour) is being retailed at an average cost of Rs 36 per kg in the country, up 5.6 percent on-year, according to data collected by the Department of Consumer Affairs.

Although retail inflation in the country eased to a three-month low of 5.02 per cent in September, the lowest in three months, it remained above the RBI’s medium-term target of 4.0 per cent.

The central bank, which tracks consumer inflation closely for formulating its monetary policy, has already signalled that controlling inflation would be key before it considers easing rates.

The ‘Bharat Atta’ will be made available through 700 mobile vans and 2,000 government-run outlets.

The development comes amid a gradual increase in the prices of wheat and wheat-based products in several parts of the country and as the festive season gathers steam in the country, which is typically characterised by higher consumer spending.

Responding to a Moneycontrol query, Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Singh said, “Government will take similar steps to reduce inflation if any other commodity shows increasing signs. The government is proactive and doing everything it can to control inflation.”

This article has been republished from Moneycontrol