The Forum of Free Enterprise is a non-political organization founded in 1956 by A. D. Shroff, and has been established to educate public opinion in India on free enterprise and a democratic way of life. The Forum publishes booklets to further its objects. The following booklet is titled “The Current Price Situation” was published on September 15, 1998, and was authored by S.S. Bhandare and Dr. Abhay Pethe. This booklet is a textual representation of the talk given by S.S. Bhandare and Dr. Abhay Pethe on 18th August 1998 in Mumbai.

The first part of the booklet is titled “Resurgence of Inflation” by S.S. Bhandare and the author evaluates some critical questions about the current price situation: What are the causes of inflationary resurgence? Is this a temporary or a seasonal phenomenon? What are the implications of rising prices? What policy measures are required to deal with the prevailing situation? The author provides a statistical overview, the cause-and-effect relationship and highlights the areas of comfort. The author concludes by discussing policy issues and what needs to be done for inflation management.

The second part of the booklet is titled “Understanding the Phenomenon and its implications” by Dr. Abhay Pethe. The author begins by discussing what is meant by price scenario or price structure and what is the function it performs. The author explains: what is inflation? the reasons for inflation, and it further elucidates why does inflation matter?