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Kochiites angry over petroleum price hike

KOCHI: Kochiites have described the steep hike in the prices of petroleum products and cooking gas as ‘absolutely ridiculous’.

The common man on Wednesday reacted with anger to the escalating prices. “The worst is yet to come. Prices of essential items will also go up with the increase in petroleum prices,” was how Rajan, an employee of a beauty saloon in the city responded to the soaring prices of petroleum products.

“I am planning to go back to my hometown in Tirunelveli. There, I will get rice from ration shop for Rs.2. Life here is really tough. I bought 1 kg rice from a shop in Edappally for Rs.23 yesterday. How can I survive here?” he asked.

Sajan, a carpenter residing at Vennala, said that his monthly budget would go haywire with the increase in the prices of petrol and diesel.

“I am paying Rs.600 as bus charges for my daughter who is studying in a school at Edappally. I fear that might go up from next month onwards. The prices of rice and vegetables will also go up,” he said. Anilkumar S., an employee of BSNL, said that the hike in prices would have a catastrophic effect on the common man. “The hike will not have much of an impact on the rich. But the urban middle-class will be forced to tighten their belts in view of the rising costs. I ride a motorbike and used to shell out Rs.1,000 monthly. The hike will affect my family budget severely,” he said.

There was dismay among housewives who were outraged at the government decision to hike the price of cooking gas by Rs.50. “I cannot believe this (hike),” was how Priya S., a marketing professional, reacted. “I would like to experiment with an induction cooker. But I am not sure whether it would bring down the cost,” she said. Jacqueline Joseph, a research scholar, said that past experience has shown that increased prices of petrol and diesel have a trickle-down effect on prices of essential items and bus and auto rickshaw fares. “I will have to introduce stringent cost-saving measures,” she said.

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