Bhubaneswar: Odisha unit of the Congress will launch a statewide agitation from July 7 to 17 in protest against the hike in prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas.
Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee Niranjan Patnaik said this July 7, the party activists would launch a protest in front of all block offices and July 9 before all district headquarters in protest against the hike.
Patnaik appealed to all people of the state not to buy petrol and diesel and cooking gas July 15 as a mark of protest.
July 17 a signature campaign will be launched in front of all petrol pumps against the unprecedented hike in oil prices.
The party during the agitation period would also protest against the mismanagement in paddy procurement, Patnaik said.
The Congress activists would move from door to door in a month-long campaign to apprise the people about the price hike, and the anti-people policy of both the Union and state government.
The party, the Congress president said, would interact with the family members of people infected or died due to coronavirus and submit a report to the AICC.
The Congress leader said the price of petrol per litre has at present crossed Rs 100 and the price of diesel per litre was nearing Rs100 while the price of cooking gas per cylinder has gone up to Rs 834.
He attributed the rise in the prices due to the imposition of additional taxes by both the state and the central government.
Patnaik said the hike in oil prices at a time when the Corona has badly affected the financial backbone of the people, has skyrocketed the prices of essential commodities and hurt the people hard.
He said in July 2013 during the UPA regime, the price of petrol per litre was Rs 74.24 and diesel was priced at Rs 67.57 while the price of crude oil per barrel was 102,92 dollars.
Although the crude oil price per barrel was now 75 dollar the prices of oil and cooking gas had gone up due to the anti-people policy of both the state and the Central government.
UNI