True Relief is the Need of the Hour
AS THE SECOND-WAVE COVID-19 NUMBERS START DECREASING, ALL THE STATES HAVE moved towards easing the lockdown restrictions. The economy is limping back slowly towards normality and so is the automobile industry. However, at a time when everybody is losing income or taking a salary cut, the cost of fuel is going up by the day. The Excise Duty on a litre of petrol has gone up from Rs 9 and 48 paise to Rs 32 and 90 paise and that on diesel from Rs 3.56 to Rs 31.81 per litre. This, in turn, has pushed up the prices of all the goods, starting from all the basic commodities to new two-wheelers because neither the manufacturers nor the dealers are going to bear the extra cost of transport; it is you and I who will have to bear that extra cost.
The subsidy on electric two-wheelers has been doubled from 20 per cent to 40 per cent. This is a welcome move by the government. What will really give a boost to the sale of electric two-wheelers is the cost of fuel, for it is a recurrent pinch for the ordinary citizen. When one visits the petrol pump, one gets 30 to 40 per cent less fuel for the same amount of money. On an uplifting note, it was nice to see Marc Marquez back on the top spot of the podium. A number of people are inclined to compare his return after the crash to Mick Doohan’s. However, the injury that Mick Doohan and Barry Sheene suffered was far worse than that sustained by Marc and, therefore, for me the greatest successful return to racing would be that by Barry and Mick. As for Barry, it was not once but twice that he suffered life-threatening injuries so grievous that most other riders would have thrown in the towel. To me, his return to racing puts him at the very top. Ride in peace, Barry.