New Delhi: Industrial production declined by 8% in August, mainly due to lower output of manufacturing, mining and power generation sectors, official data showed on Monday.
According to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data, manufacturing sector production registered a decline of 8.6%, while the output of mining and power segments fell 9.8% and 1.8%, respectively.
The IIP had contracted by 1.4% in August 2019.
"It may not be appropriate to compare the IIP in the post pandemic months with the IIP for months preceding the COVID 19 pandemic," the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said in a statement.
"With the gradual relaxation of restrictions, there has been a relative improvement in the economic activities by varying degrees as well as in data reporting," it added.
Retail inflation rises to 7.34 pc in Sep
Retail inflation rose to 7.34% in September, mainly on account of higher food prices, according to government data.
The inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 6.69% in August. It was 3.99% in September last year.
The rate of price rise in the food basket was 10.68% in September compared with 9.05% in August, as per the data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on Monday.
The Reserve Bank of India mainly factors in retail inflation while deciding on the key interest rate.
