People's Democracy

CITU DENOUNCES HIKE

Through a statement issued from New Delhi on May 15, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) said that, soon after as the assembly elections in four states and Puducherry were over, the UPA government at the centre came out in its true colours. No sooner than the election results are declared, the government announced the steepest ever price hike for petrol — Rs 5 per litre. This is the ninth hike in the price of petrol in the span of the last nine months, the CITU said.

The CITU condemned the recent hike in petrol price as an utterly irresponsible action by a government that is totally insensitive to the miseries of aam admi owing to the continuously rising food inflation. “Such a steep rise in petrol price is going to have a cascading effect on the already rising prices of the essential commodities, making life of the poor more miserable,” the CITU said.

The government’s plea that it was a rise in the price of crude in the international market to 113.7 dollars per barrel which necessitated the  hiking in the petrol price is, according to the CITU, totally unfounded. The fact is that as at least 50 per cent of the domestic petrol price is the tax component going to government exchequer. In itself, the rupee equivalent of the crude rice in the international market, along with the refining cost, is much less than what is being charged for petrol in the domestic market. Therefore, the CITU said that taking the plea of a rise in international prices of crude to justify the price hike in domestic market is nothing but an act of deception.

In view of this reality, the CITU has demanded that the government roll back the hike in petrol price and reduce the tax burden (both excise and customs duties) on crude and petroleum products to a rational level.

The CITU has asked all its affiliate unions in particular and working class in general to unitedly protest against the frequent hikes in the price of petrol, which is an anti-people decision of the UPA government that wants to fleece the common people. The CITU has decided to organise mass demonstrations in the workplaces, joint rallies, dharnas etc for the purpose.