Protest today: Price rise biggest challenge for people, says Cong
LUCKNOW: The Congress will organise a protest march against price rise from the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) office to Raj Bhavan here on Thursday.
Congress national spokesperson Gaurav Vallabh said there was a sharp increase in prices of essential items after the assembly elections in five states (Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab).
Price rise is the biggest challenge for the sustenance of each individual in the country, he said at a press conference here.
“The lives and livelihood of people have been affected by price rise,” he said.
The government at the Centre is exploiting farmers, he said, adding that rate of fertilizer has increased and the price of petrol and diesel is going up daily.
“When the Congress was in power, the price of petrol was Rs 71.41 per litre and diesel Rs 55.49 per litre. Today, the price of petrol is Rs 105.25 per litre and diesel Rs 96.83 per litre in Lucknow. The BJP government has effected a 531% increase in excise duty on diesel and 203% on petrol after forming the government in 2014,” he said.
The BJP government at the Centre earned Rs 26,51,919 crore in eight years by increasing excise duty on petrol and diesel, Gaurav Vallabh claimed.
The prices of commercial and domestic gas cylinders have increased, he said.
The Congress spokesperson further said the hike in prices of compressed natural gas (CNG) and piped natural gas added to the common people’s woes.
After April, the toll tax on the national highways went up by 10% to 18%, Gaurav Vallabh said.
He also said the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority announced a hike of 10.76% in the prices of around 800 essential drugs.
The rates of construction materials, including steel, cement, bricks, copper and sanitary fittings have also gone up, he added
The central government has withdrawn tax deduction on home loans, he said.