Import of sensitive items including fruits, vegetables and edible oils went up 42.6 per cent to Rs 83,714 crore during April-January 2011-12.
The value of sensitive items imported during the year-ago period was Rs 58,697 crore.
Import of fruits and vegetables soared to Rs 7,932 crore from Rs 4,273 crore, the Commerce Ministry said.
Items such as foodgrains, automobiles, milk and beverages fall in the sensitive category and the import of these goods is monitored by the Government to see if there is any adverse impact on the domestic industry.
Import of edible oils rose 57.4 per cent to Rs 37,742 crore from Rs 23,975 crore.
India is the world’s largest importer of edible oil and one of the largest consumers.
“The increase in edible oil import is mainly due to substantial increase in import of crude palm oil and its fractions,” it said.
During the 10 months of last fiscal, import of alcoholic beverages and spices also increased 56.5 per cent and 59.4 per cent, respectively.
Import of small scale industries’ products such as umbrellas, locks, toys and glassware went up 45.8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1,830 crore.
Automobile imports jumped 61.5 per cent to Rs 3,120 crore. Similarly, milk imports too increased 20 per cent. However, imports of foodgrains contracted 93.5 per cent.
Retail inflation, based on the Consumer Price Index, was 7.65 per cent in January 2012.
Import of sensitive items from countries like Indonesia, China, Malaysia, Argentina, Germany, Korea, US, Canada, Japan, UK, Australia have gone up, while those from Brazil have gone down.