Govt decision fuels people's anger

The BJP and the Left are planning a stir against the government over the hike. But the  hike comes just a day after the government announced that India’s food inflation had soared nearly 10-week high of 9.13 percent for the week ended June 11.

Kiran Devi, a house maid, was upset over the hike of Rs 50 in LPG cooking gas. “I just saw the news on TV. The government has no mercy left for the poor. I have other expenses to look after and with this added burden I will be on the verge of crumbling,” said a miffed Devi.

Similarly, 25-year-old Vivek Malik, working in a publication, was equally angry. “Yesterday (Thursday), Pranab Mukherjee said that the government will do something about the inflation. Today they have done ‘something’ about the inflation which has battered the common man in this country,” rued Malik.

A major ally of the government, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, said she did not support frequent fuel price hikes as they put immense pressure on the common people. “We don’t support this frequent price rise of fuels. This creates lot of problems for the people. We have already conveyed our opinion at the appropriate place,” the Trinamool Congress chief told mediapersons in Kolkata.

The opposition parties were  up in arms. Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj tweeted that the decision showed insensitivity on the government’s part. “This is the 10th hike in the prices of petroleum products. Congress government came to power on the slogan ‘Congress ka haath aam adami ke saath.’. This is what the common man has got. This government is totally insensitive to the sufferings of the common man.. The victims are housewives, farmers and poorest of the poor,” she tweeted.

The BJP plans protest at all district headquarters against the fuel price hike. Communist Party of India (CPI) leader A B Bardhan said that the decision to raise price would affect the common man in the country. “This is one of the greatest attacks on the common man. Due to the hike in diesel prices there will be increase in the transportation cost. Besides this, increase in cooking gas prices will affect the middle class households in India,” he said.

Following the recent dip in international prices, the Indian crude basket on Friday was priced at $107.07 per barrel on Thursday. The average of the previous fortnight from April 16-30 stood at $112.74 per barrel. The last time the monthly average was above $100 level was in August 2008, when the crude basket price was calculated at $113.05 per barrel.