Badal flays Centre’s decision on deregulation of diesel

by Punjabnewswire4u

CHANDIGARH, JANUARY 17

        Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal today assailed the Congress led UPA government for deregulating the Diesel prices besides raising the cap on supply of subsidized cooking gas (LPG) per household to just nine cylinders from six instead of twelve thereby further accentuating the woes of the beleaguered state peasantry besides upsetting the budget of the kitchen household especially hitting hard the house wives.

        In a statement, the Chief Minister slammed the Centre for allowing frequent small hikes over a period of time by putting in place a ‘deregulated  diesel mechanism’ and described it as a ‘retrograde step’ to crush the farming community which was already reeling under the exorbitant debt of Rs. 32,000 crore. He said that this unfortunate decision coupled with the non remunerative MSP would further bring the depressed peasantry of the state on the verge of economic disaster. He said such anti people policies of the Union government have exposed the real face of the Congress government in Centre. Mr. Badal said that the move to hike the price of diesel have proved that the Congress have always shed crocodile tears on the issues pertaining to the common man and have secured the interests of the big MNCs. He said the hike in administrate diesel price was a sensitive issue and the Centre should have taken all states into confidence before taking this significant decision. He said that Centre should had realized the cascading effect on the prices of essential commodities as diesel was consumed in large quantities by public transport and freight carriers and subsequently the inflationary trend would crush the back bone of the common man.

Coming down heavily on the Centre government, the Chief Minister said that the move was a clear attempt on the part of the UPA government to extend largesse to the big oil companies that too at the cost of the common man.  He said that due to the anti-farmers stance of the Union government, the agriculture was no longer a profitable venture and the brave farmers of the state who had played a pivotal role in making the country self-reliant in food production and were now left in lurch.  

Lashing out at the UPA government for an apathetic attitude towards the state government, the Chief Minister said that the Congress has always meted out a step motherly treatment with the state. He said that a recent example of this gross discrimination was that the state had been denied drought relief package whereas the Union Minister and his team had promised about it during their visit at Chandigarh. Mr. Badal blamed Centre for showing least sensitivity toward the plight of Punjab farmers who had borne extra expenditure on diesel in nurturing their paddy in wake of drought like condition in state adding he said in fact it was a deep rooted conspiracy of the Union government to ruin the state by devastating the agriculture which was the backbone of its economy.

        The Chief Minister also ridiculed the Centre for just increasing the subsidized LPG cylinders from six to nine, which would be a severe blow to the household budget and must be hiked to atleast twelve cylinders so that the people especially the house wives could sigh of relief.