New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday took a jibe at the central government after the hike in prices of domestic liquified petroleum gas (LPG) by ₹50 per cylinder, insisting that “Only Congress governs for the welfare of poor and middle-class Indian families. It’s the core of our economic policy.”
In his tweet, the Congress leader attempted to establish a “before and now” comparison by demonstrating how the old UPA administration handled the situation better than the current BJP administration.
Gandhi shared the cost of cooking gas which was ₹410 in May 2014, which has increased by ₹585.50 till now and cost ₹999 in 2022. He further mentioned that the former Congress government provided ₹827 while now the government provides no subsidy. “2 cylinders then for the price of 1 now”, he further added.
On Saturday, his party colleague Randeep Surjewala criticised the central government, claiming that “the cost of subsidised cooking gas has escalated by 2.5 times and it has gone out of reach for poor and middle-class homes,” and demanding that the price be brought down to the 2014 rate.
Cooking gas became $50 per cylinder on Saturday, the second rate hike in less than two months, bringing the price for over 289 million families to over $1,000 every 14.2 kg refill in many places, owing to growing international energy costs as a result of the Ukraine conflict.
Domestic liquified petroleum gas (LPG) prices in Delhi surged to 999.50 per cylinder on Saturday, according to the latest update from state-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) dealers. Local taxes and transportation expenses influence prices across the country. It costs ₹1,008.50 per 14.2 kg cylinder in Navsari, Gujarat, ₹1,026 in Ludhiana, Punjab, ₹1,015.50 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, and 1,098 in Patna (Bihar).
This is not the first time that cooking gas prices have skyrocketed. In January 2014 it was ₹1,241 per 14.2 kg cylinder in Delhi. Since then its rates remained volatile, but from May 1, 2020 when a cylinder’s price was reduced by ₹170 to ₹581.5, cooking gas prices have only risen barring a minor ₹10 per cylinder price reduction in April 2021, reports say.
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