Food price index rose 18.65 per cent in the 12 months to Dec 12, while the fuel index was up 3.95 per cent, the government said on Thursday.
The worst monsoon in nearly four decades and flooding in some parts of the country have pushed up food prices. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday said checking inflation is a major challenge for the government in the short-to-medium term.
Annual wholesale inflation rose 4.78 per cent in November from a year earlier, compared with 1.34 per cent rise in October and 8.48 percent a year ago.