Earlier drought and the recent torrential rains in Andhra Pradesh, a major rice producing state, is the cause of 35 percent slide in the Kharif rice production.

Whether you blame it on drought or floods, rice is going to cost more, say rice traders.

The country will see a slump in the production of around 12 million tones in rice production alone. The production figures, which stood at 99 million tones last year, is just 87 million this year.

Analysts say that there will be an increase of Rs 5 to 6 per kg in the coming days. Due to the loss of crops, the traders are unable to replenish their stocks.