CPI protests against rising onion prices in Hanamkonda

Hanamkonda (Warangal-U): CPI workers staged a protest against the soaring prices of onion at the Ambedkar statue here on Monday.

The CPI workers led by their State Secretariat member Thakkallapally Srinivas Rao and district secretary Mekala Ravi staged a sit-in protest, demanding the intervention of the Central government in controlling the spiralling onion prices.

Rao said: "Onion was sold for Rs 20 per kg in August. Now, it has gone up gradually to Rs 70 to Rs 80 per kg. The prices have skyrocketed in just one month due to failure of the Centre. The NDA government led by BJP totally failed to control the prices of all essential commodities," Rao said.

He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi who promised to bring down the prices of essential commodities within 100 days of BJP coming to power, made no attempt to do so. Instead of focusing on poor and downtrodden, the BJP government is protecting the interests of the corporate houses.

Rao demanded the government to take stringent action against the hoarders who were resorting to black-marketers. "The government should make arrangements to supply onion through fair price shops," he demanded.

Mekala Ravi said that even though the onion prices have skyrocketed in the last one month, it didn't benefit the farmers as the middlemen are making hay of the situation. The government needs to take stern action against the hoarders who created artificial shortage of onion, he demanded.

Senior leaders Kare Bikshapathi, Sheikh Basha Miya, B Ravi, G Ramesh, Sudarshan and Bhavani among others took part in the protest.