India October 2026 CPI Inflation Report
India's retail inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) with base year 2024 reached 6.09% year-on-year in October 2026, representing a significant increase from the 5.54% recorded in September 2026. The inflation showed a notable divergence between rural and urban areas, with rural inflation at 6.63% and urban inflation at 5.41%.
Food inflation emerged as the primary driver of overall price increases, with the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) registering 8.94% year-on-year inflation. Rural food inflation stood at 9.09% while urban food inflation was slightly lower at 8.68%. The food and beverages category, which carries the highest weight of 36.75% in the CPI basket, recorded 8.51% inflation.
Item-wise Price Movements
The report highlights extreme variations at the item level. Onion prices showed the highest inflation at 116.22%, followed by garlic at 60.74%, silver jewellery at 52.39%, ginger at 48.32%, and lemon at 47.30%. Conversely, several items experienced deflation, with potatoes showing the largest decline at -14.24%, followed by cauliflower at -10.57%, coconut at -5.60%, brinjal at -3.34%, and cabbage at -1.92%.
Sectoral Breakdown
Among the major divisions, restaurants and accommodation services recorded the highest inflation at 10.06%, followed by personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods at 10.14%. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels showed relatively moderate inflation at 2.90%, while health services inflation stood at 2.05%.
State-wise Performance
Andhra Pradesh recorded the highest combined inflation among major states at 7.25%, followed by Puducherry at 7.96%, Tamil Nadu at 7.29%, Telangana at 7.26%, and Madhya Pradesh at 7.19%. The lowest inflation was observed in Mizoram at 2.85%, followed by Meghalaya at 3.63%, and Nagaland at 3.66%.
Data Collection Methodology
The price data was collected from 1,407 urban markets (including online markets) and 1,465 villages covering all States/UTs through personal visits by field staff. The response rate achieved 100% in both rural and urban markets during October 2026. The reference period for petrol, diesel and LPG prices was the 15th of the corresponding month.
The next CPI release for November 2026 is scheduled for December 14, 2026. Detailed state and item-wise indices are available on the eSankhyiki portal of MoSPI, though the report cautions that state-level item indices should be interpreted with caution due to potential thin samples of price quotations for some items.