Prices of essential commodities coming down: Pawar

New Delhi, March 18 : Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar Thursday said the prices of essential commodities, including sugar, were coming down.

"The situation on rising prices of sugar, potato and other essential commodities have improved. The situation is definitely changing and it is a good sign," Pawar told reporters after inaugurating a conference on the Kharif Campaign.

Driven by increasing food prices, India's annual rate of inflation, based on the wholesale price index, rose to 9.89 percent in February from 8.56 percent the previous month.

The United Progressive Alliance government has been under attack from the opposition and Left parties over the rise in prices of essential commodities over the past few months.