Kediri City Government Calls Rice A Motivater For Inflation In East Java

ILLUSTRATION OF DOK VOI

JAKARTA - The City Government (Pemkot) of Kediri, East Java, said that rice commodities are contributors to inflation drivers in Kediri City, one of which is influenced by delays in planting farmers' rice due to water problems.

Head of the Kediri City Economic Administration Section, Tetuko Erwin Sukarno, said that monthly for February 2024 when compared to January 2024, Kediri City experienced inflation, especially in rice commodities. This is not only happening in Kediri, but also in other areas.

"The commodity of rice has indeed become a contributor to the inflation drive in East Java and all of Java," said Tetuko Erwin, Sunday, March 3.

He said this could not be separated from the old harvest conditions. If farmers usually start planting rice in November and harvest at the end of January, many farmers choose to postpone planting due to concerns about the absence of rain.

This is part of the El Nino phenomenon. Despite falling back from planting, a number of farmers had started planting in early January 2024.

"Hopefully by the end of March we can harvest the highway, so that rice prices can fall again," he said.

The Kediri City Government, he continued, made several efforts to reduce the increase in rice prices with Perum Bulog by accelerating the distribution of 10 kilograms of rice food assistance to 33,632 Beneficiary Families (KPM) and stabilizing rice prices by operating a cheap rice market in sub-districts and sub-districts.

The municipal government, he said, also supports the supply of raw materials in rice mills so that they can sell rice at affordable retail prices.

Erwin also appealed to the people of Kediri City not to buy excessive rice. "There is no need to worry about rice difficulties. At the TPID leadership meeting at the end of last February, the Kediri Branch Bulog Corporation has said that it currently controls 18 thousand tons of rice, so that the stock is sufficient for the next three months, and together with the Kediri City Government, it will continue to carry out market operations to be able to serve rice at affordable prices," he said.

Meanwhile, the Head of BPS Kediri City Pardjan said that approaching the holy month of Ramadan 1445 Hijri, the Consumer Price Index (JCI) in Kediri City is still under controlled status.

"In February 2024, Kediri City's inflation month to month was 0.54 percent and year on year it was 2.48 percent under control," he said.

His party appealed to the public not to worry about the availability of food supplies in Kediri City ahead of Ramadan 2024.

He also provided input to the Kediri City Regional Inflation Control Team (TPID) so that they routinely make visits to the market to monitor commodity prices, especially those consumed by the public.

"It is necessary to make efforts from the Kediri City TPID to continue monitoring commodity prices in the market so that next month inflation in Kediri will remain under control," said Pardjan.