A NATION IN DISTRESS….A PERSPECTIVE ON PRICE RISE
A week before I got a Sms saying “Petrol price hiked by 7.58 rs aur karo santa banta k jokes dekha sardar ka revenge”….. At that time I took that diatribe as a joke but later on I realized that the price hike is catching fire now. And then on 31st may 2012 we saw an outburst of Common man in the form of “Bharat bandh”
At that time a question that I began pondering over is this common man on streets putting buses on fire, stopping trains causing damage to national wealth???
Over the past several years rising prices have become a chronic issue in India’s national life. They have given rise to widespread distress, especially among people who are already living at the subsistence level and also among those in the fixed income group, viz., wage earners and the salaried classes in layman’s language.
Now coming back to the same question was it an outburst of common man or it was an attempt by political party to exploit the situation to their political advantage
You see novel methods of protests and agitations are being taken up by the political parties on both sides of the political spectrum to draw public attention and to some extent exploit the situation to their political advantage.
On 31st May 2012 what we saw was the common man seems backed off from joining the protest then why This “Bharat bandh” when common man himself is not participating in the cause.
Here are some of their responses of the people who were asked to share their view on Bharat bandh:
People said:
Petrol prices will always rise. Politicians will call bandhs. Their party workers will resort to violence. Next day all will return to normal. Damaging public property does not show the right path for a developing country. Bandh is self destruction.
How is this bandh going to help in reducing the fuel price? It should be left on citizen whether they want to protest or not.
Is it any surprise that despite all the histrionics and jingoism, the attitude of the government towards such protests is that of indifference? In this volatile situation it is only anyone’s guess as to what measure should the common man resort to…..any ideas?
A lot has been said about the petrol price hike, politically and editorially. Lets face the facts, we import crude oil and those prices are monitored by the OPEC. Then the cost of refining and logistics. Now lets see what the petroleum products are. Asphalt,Diesel fuel
Fuel oils,Gasoline,Jet fuel,Kerosene,Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG),Lubricating oils,Paraffin wax,Tar and Petrochemicals. Out of the above products the common man uses which one? Kerosene, that’s it. The price of kerosene is not increased. Then why this hue and cry? petrol, well he does not use that he uses the local train or bus and in emergency auto. The cars which guzzle petrol are a luxury and if a man can afford a luxury of over 4 lacs he might as well pay for it. Motorcycle, well mostly used by middle class and it give a mileage of over 60 kmpl. The middle class reimburses it from his employer as conveyance which is a component in his salary. Then why the hue and cry? the common man cannot support any bandh as a day not working means no pay for that day. So he has to work, then why they were not on the streets? well state supported strikes means no protection for them. means they are like footballs, the opposition kicks them and then the goons. You want not petrol hikes stop buying cars and any fuel guzzling vehicles. Travel by local transport and see the difference. BTW the oil will not last for long so start to preserve and cherish it it. You may/will have some interesting stories to tell your grand or great grand children as how you once rode a iron horse which ran on something called petrol.