Dharamshala: The district committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxists) here on Wednesday held a protest demonstration against rising prices at a time when for the majority of the people incomes as well as means of livelihood had fallen.
The demonstrators also staged a walk from the Post Office to Kachari Adda in lower Dharamshala, displaying banners, party flags and placards. Ravindra Kumar, a Marxist leader, in his address said that inflation had sky-rocketed in a time when means of income of about 97 percent of the people had reduced during the ongoing pandemic.
“In such a situation, the government should have given 10 kg ration per person to all the people. The facility of cheap ration should have been provided in the depot. At this time, these jobless people should have been given a monthly economic allowance of Rs. 75 hundred. But on the other hand, the government has imposed heavy inflation on the people. Since May, there has been a 24 times increase in the prices of petrol and diesel,” said Ravindra Kumar.
He said that market prices of food items had gone out of reach of the common man and despite global crude oil much below their all-time high prices, the prices of diesel and petrol were at an all-time high in the country.
The Marxist leader added that there was a surge in prices of edible oil, onions, pulses and other commodities in the market. The price of LPG has gone up tremendously and this inflation is at its peak due to the capitalist policies of the state and central government, he said.
CPI(M) has demanded that the Essential Commodities Act be reinstated and the increase in prices of cheap ration at the depot be withdrawn.
Arvind Sharma is an award winning bi-lingual journalist with more than 20 years of experience.
He has worked with Divya Himachal, Dainik Jagran, Dainik Bhasker, Vir Partap, Ajit and PTI.
In 2010, he was conferred the Himachal Kesri journalism award. He reports on the Tibetan Government in Exile, politics, sports, tourism and other topics. He lives in Dharamshala.
