Tirupati: Left parties stage protest against spiralling prices

Tirupati: The Left parties, CPI and CPM, responding to the state parties call, separately held protests in the city against the spiralling prices crippling the life of common man here on Monday. They demanded the state government and the Centre to take concrete measures to bring down the prices to provide succour to people. The CPM city unit which organised the protests at the ward secretariats in several divisions, criticised the state and Central governments remaining mum on the burning issue. Leading the protest at 5th Division ward secretariat, CPM city secretary T Subramanyam said the continuous increase in the fuel prices coupled with the recent increase of LPG gas hit hard the people more so the middle and lower-income groups while the unabated increase of essentials including pulses and edible oil making the life of common man miserable. The petrol and diesel price increase saw the public transport APSRTC

and private transport operators like auto increasing the fare has a chain effect of hiking good transport also adding more burden and the common man floundering with the fuel price and essentials. Not lagging behind in hitting the common man, the YSRCP government on its part hiked the power and RTC charges, he said it is nothing but

the ruling party which assured at the time of elections that it will not increase the electricity and bus fares, betraying the people. On the Andhra government's move to pay the cash amount to the people in place of their ration quota of rice supplied through fair price shops, he said that it is nothing but a clever move to end supply of free rice providing food security and demanded the government to stop it. Warning that if the government did not take measures to rein in the spiraling prices, it has to face the wrath of people, he said declaring that the CPM along with like-minded parties would intensify the fight to force the government take required measures to control the prices of fuel. essentials etc. The protests were held at ten ward secretariats in the city in which CPM leaders Madhav, Sailakshmi, Lakshmi and others took part.

Meanwhile the CPI activists staged a novel protest condemning the unabated fuel price by conducting a mock funeral to a scooter at Krishnapuram Tana in the city on Monday. The activist mourned and placed a wreath on the scooter that died of fuel hike.

Speaking on the occasion, party state secretariat member P Haranathah Reddy flayed the state and Central government remaining aloof on controlling the increasing prices of gas, petrol, diesel and also essentials leaving the people in lurch. Terming the suffering of the people due to price rise as unprecedented, he warned that the day is not far off for the people to revolt if the situation continues. The government is also planning to levy more burden in the form of user charges, he said calling the people to be ready for a nationwide movement to force the government to stop burdening the people. CPI district secretary A Rama Naidu, district committee members Chinna Penchalaiah and T Janardhan were present.