SHIMLA: In a countrywide protest, Communist Party of India (Marxist) today staged a protest here today against price rise by taking out the protest rally in the city.
Hundreds of workers participated in the protest and shouted slogans against the Modi-led BJP government at the Centre. They demanded change in the inflationary policies being implemented by the Modi government.
The party demands the government to immediately reduce excise duty, cess and surcharge on petroleum products, provide subsidy in cooking gas, put Rs 7,500 per month in the account of non-income tax payers and give 35 kg of ration per month free of cost. They also demand that the government should roll back of increase in the prices of fertilizers and the Government should provide subsidy on it.
Sanjay Chauhan, Jagat Ram, Vijendra Mehra, Falma Chauhan, Jagmohan Thakur, Balak Ram, Vinod Bisranta, Ramakant Mishra, Himmi Devi, Kishori Datwalia, Anil, Raman, Amit Thakur, Nitish Sonia, Meena, Kalawati, Shyam Lal, Mahesh Verma, Vijay Kaushal and other party workers participated in the protest.
Ever since the NDA government was formed under the leadership of the BJP since 2014, due to the policies of the government, the crisis of widespread inflation, unemployment and agriculture crisis let loose in the country. Inflation and unemployment are at its peak in the country and have reached the highest level in the last 40 years. The Government is continuously working to impose a financial burden on the people by increasing the prices of LPG and petroleum products. Today, a cylinder of domestic gas is available for Rs.1052 and a cylinder of commercial gas is Rs.2302.
The prices of petrol and diesel are being increased continuously and today petrol is being sold at more than Rs 102 per litre. The Modi government has increased excise duty on petrol and diesel 13 times from 2014 to 2021 and reduced it four times. The excise duty on petrol in 2014 was Rs 9.48 which was increased to Rs 32.90 in 2022 and the excise duty on diesel was Rs 3.56 in 2014 which has been increased to Rs 31.80 in 2022.
CPIM claimed that the Modi government has collected about 26 lakh crore rupees in the last seven years, but with this money, no relief has been given to the people from the rising inflation. On the other hand, the Modi government has given a discount of lakhs of crores of rupees to the corporate houses during this period, which has increased their assets manifold. These policies of the government are making the rich richer and the poor and the poorer.
On the one hand, the number of billionaires in the country is increasing and on the other hand, the people are being deprived of livelihood due to the economic crisis arising out of unemployment and inflation.
Prices of food items are continuously increasing due to policies of the Government to hand over the agriculture sector to corporate houses, claimed CPIM. Today, mustard oil is being sold at Rs 230 per litre. At the same time, due to the continuous increase in the prices of flour, pulses, rice, vegetables and other food items, the crisis of livelihood is increasing for the people, Sanjay Chauhan, former mayor Shimla claimed.
Crores of people have lost their jobs today due to the implementation of the policies of the Government that have increased unemployment in the country.
Due to inflation and loss of employment, it has become difficult for crores of people to earn the bread and butter. The policies being taken by the Modi government in the country are responsible for this kind of situation and only by reversing these policies can this crisis be overcome, CPM leaders said.
The CPM leader Jagat Ram said that party would intensify the struggle by mobilizing the people to change this anti-people neo-liberal policies that are causing price rise, unemployment and agrarian distress.
