Current Context: On 15 May 2025, provisional data from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) showed India’s combined Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation fell to 3.16% year-on-year in April 2025—the lowest since July 2019—down 18 basis points from March.

About Retail Inflation (CPI):

• CPI Combined: Aggregates CPI-Urban and CPI-Rural; measures average price change for a fixed basket of goods and services.
• Base Year: 2012 = 100 (calculated by the National Statistical Office under MoSPI).
• Core Inflation: Excludes volatile food and fuel; rose slightly to 1% in April—within the Reserve Bank of India’s 2–6% target band.

Key Drivers of the Decline:

• Food Prices Eased Sharply: Vegetables and pulses saw significant deflation, pulling down overall CPI.
• Non-Food Categories Softened: Housing and “pan, tobacco & intoxicants” reported lower price rises compared to March.
• Rural Inflation: Headline CPI-Rural fell to 92% from 3.25% in March, reflecting broad-based relief.