Price rise burning hole in consumers’ pockets

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, September 8

Soaring inflation on basic essential commodities such as LPG, sugar and even bread is burning a hole in the pocket of consumers. However, much to the discomfort of the common public, this trend neither shakes the Central nor the state governments from its slumber, feel residents.

Rajesh Gupta, a trader, said: “The governments have squarely failed to rein in inflation on essential commodities such as LPG, fossil fuel, cooking oil and other items. They neither have time, nor the will to address the issue of soaring inflation.” He accused the delivery men of a gas agency of charging extra cost that was written on the receipt during the delivery of LPG cylinder. He pointed out that he received the receipt of LPG cylinder mentioning Rs925 as its cost and the delivery man insisted on asking for Rs35 over that amount.

When he approached the gas dealer, he flatly asked him not to give anything above the receipt. When he told this thing to the delivery man, he simply asked him to pick up his cylinder from the agency itself.

Hargun Kaur, a house wife, said not only LPG refill, but the prices of bread and sugar, too, have increased in the past one week. “Hike in prices of LPG refill was noticed by all, but the rise in the price of bread by Rs5 per packet and sugar in retail stretched the monthly kitchen budget.

Government seems to be non-existent for retail shops who charge as per their own will. Famous ice-cream sellers in the city also hiked softy price by Rs10 per piece recently.

Sandeep Gupta, general secretary of the Amritsar Retail Karyana Association, said the trend of soaring prices on groceries have shocked them and the reasons were inexplicable. It was high time the government intervened to take stock of the situation, he said.