Guwahati, March 6: Opposition parties in Assam have expressed strong resentment against recent hike in the price of domestic LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders in the wake of “public outcry over rising inflation” of late.
Members of the Assam Trinamool Mahila Congress took out a procession from the Jayanagar locality here on Monday in protest against the Centre’s decision to hike the rate of 14.2 kg domestic LPG cylinders by Rs 50 per cylinder with effect from March 1, 2023.
Holding placards and banners, the protesters raised slogans against what they termed as an “anti-people” move while demanding that the price hike of domestic LPG cylinders should be immediately revoked by the incumbent government at the Centre.
They further threatened to intensify their agitation if the government does not pay heed to their demand to revoke the price hike of domestic LPG cylinders.
“The BJP-led government at the Centre seems to be ignoring the public outcry over rising inflation. The arrogance of power at its best,” Assam Trinamool Congress president Ripun Bora reacted.
Notably, the price of 19 kg commercial cylinders was also hiked by Rs 350.50, which is the second hike in commercial LPG cylinder prices this year.
Earlier, on January 1, commercial cylinder prices were increased by Rs 25 per unit.
The revised rate of commercial cylinders also came into effect from March 1.
On Friday, members of the Assam Pradesh Mahila Congress had staged a similar protest at Rajiv Bhawan against the rise in the price of LPG domestic cylinders.
The protest was led by Assam Pradesh Mahila Congress president Mira Borthakur.
The members of Mahila Congress expressed their resentment over the hike in cooking gas prices and raised slogans against the BJP-led government at the Centre and the state.
Speaking to reporters, Borthakur had recalled that during the Congress regime, an LPG cylinder was delivered at the rate of Rs 410 to the people as against a steep rise in the past eight years.
Members of the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) had also opposed the recent hike in the prices of domestic LPG domestic cylinders and commercial cylinders, terming the move as “irrational and unfair”.