Inflation in Telangana continues to be the highest among all states since January 2026 and now is at 6.15 per cent in May, which may be due to higher taxes on fuel, rise in rural wages and reliance on imported fresh produces, according to an SBI Research report.
State-level consumer inflation statistics highlight a broad regional disparity across the country.
Out of the 36 states/UTs, there are 12-14 states/UTs where inflation is higher than all India level. Inflation in many of the major states, like, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, MP and Rajasthan etc., continues to be higher than all India level of inflation, the report mentioned.
Among the major states, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, and Odisha have registered more than 2 per cent increase in inflation during January-May 2026, while All-India level inflation increased only by 1.19 per cent.
“However, the distribution of inflation among states/ UTs highlights that majority of the state’s inflation fall between 2-4 per cent during January-May 2026,” said the report.
India’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rose to 3.93 per cent in May, up from 3.48 per cent in April. The impact of an increase in petrol/diesel prices and slight LPG shortage is clearly visible in May data.
Transport inflation increased by 176 bps to 1.8 per cent in May as compared to April. Similarly, inflation in Restaurants and accommodation services (which largely depend on LPG) increased by 154 bps to 5.7 per cent in May as compared to 4.2 per cent in April.
The moderate rise in gold and silver prices led to almost 80 bps increase in inflation rate in the personal care division.
At the item level, silver jewellery contributed 56 bps to headline inflation, followed by gold with a contribution of 30 bps, unchanged from the previous month.
Global commodity prices, as reflected in the World Bank Pink Sheet, also showed stronger inflation in silver relative to gold. The contribution of petrol increased to 14 bps, while LPG shortages contributed to higher prices of cooked meat and cooked snacks, said the report.
