Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 6: Police intercepted the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) protest rally in Srinagar against hike in cooking gas price and demanding increase in the cap on subsidised LPG cylinders in the state.
Hundreds of party workers including the MLAs led by party president Mehbooba Mufti, staged a brief sit-in at Regal chowk in the heart of the city after a heavy contingent of police stopped the rally from heading towards the historic Lal Chowk.
The rally was taken out from PDP headquarters Sher-e-Kashmir Park where leaders targeted the Omar Abdullah Government for not providing to the people from hiking LPG prices and cap of 6 cylinders per year.
The opposition leader described the price rise on cooking gas and shortage of LPG as a grave situation. “We demand the State Government to announce subsidy on the LPG so that consumers in the State can get at least 12 gas cylinders annually against the cap of six announced by the Centre”, Mehbooba Mufti told reporters at Regal Chowk during sit in.
She said the six subsidised cylinders per year are not enough for the people as LPG is not only being used for cooking purposes but also to light the houses and heating purposes during winter when the temperatures dip below freezing point and there is acute shortage of electricity.
“Kashmir is a cold place and there is a possibility of upheaval during the winter if LPG gets out of reach of the common people who cannot afford LPG without subsidy,” the PDP president said.
Mehbooba questioned the Government’s claim that it is not in a position to provide subsidy on the LPG. She said: “The statement of the Government on the issue is nothing but a joke with the people of the State. If the Congress-led Governments at other places announced the subsidy on the LPG, why the State Government is expressing its inability to follow suit.”
The opposition leader said that Government has decided to issue only 3 LPG subsidized cylinders for the remaining part of current financial year with a price of unsubsidized LPG cylinder fixed at Rs 961. She said earlier the Government had fixed it at Rs 720.
The PDP president expressed concern over women waiting in queues for hours to get their LPG documentation done. “But despite waiting for hours in queues they return home empty handed”, she said, adding registration and documentation process is cumbersome and Government should made it easy.
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