Oppose Hike in Gas Prices

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) strongly opposes the decision of the government to increase the price of gas produced by the public sector companies from $ 1.8 per unit to $ 4.2 per unit. This doubling of the price in the Administered Price Mechanism (APM) has been done to bring it in line with the price approved by the government for the gas produced by the Reliance India Ltd (RIL).

The government decision seems motivated to ensure the market for RIL’s gas since the lower priced gas of the public sector enterprises would have been more attractive for the power and fertilizer producers.

By this step the additional burden of Rs. 8000 crore will be passed on to the consumers of power and fertilizers. The transport industry using CNG will also be affected.

The doubling of the APM gas price comes at a time when the country is witnessing high inflation and price rise. The benefits accruing to one corporate group seems more important for the government than public interest.