Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Dec 15: Scores of Kerosene retailers staged a protest today against the implementation of SRO-285 in Srinagar.
The protesters said the implementation of SRO-285 will directly affect around 75000 households in Srinagar city, which will, in turn, reduce their kerosene oil quota. “Presently, we distribute kerosene to 185000 households but the new policy would reduce the number to 111000 and the rest 75000 has to suffer,” Mushtaq Ahmad, a protestor said.
He further said that the policy would have detrimental effects on their lives and if the Government was mulling to close their business and they should be rehabilitated. “We have been doing the business for last forty or fifty years and cannot think of doing anything else and the new policy was plunging them into starvation. “I was getting 900 litres of kerosene for 300 and earning nearing Rs. 2000 but now I will get half of it. Tell me how can, I run my family on mere Rs. 1000?” he said.
The protesters further said that they have been confused with the stratification wherein two additional categories have been created – Non-Priority Household (NPH) and Priority House Hold(PHH). “The people under NPH and PHH have not been issued separate cards which bothers the distribution system”.
Meanwhile, the protestors threatened the Government of dire consequences if SRO- 285 was not rolled back.
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