Shimla: Chief Minister Prof. Prem Kumar Dhumal has strongly criticised the UPA Government for increasing the rates of diesel and providing subsidized domestic LPG cylinders upto six in a year. He said that the people of the country had been crushed under the rising prices by UPA and were now finding difficult to make both ends meet. He said that every policy of the Central Government was anti-people and had hit the common man adversely.

Prof. Dhumal said that the rise in price of diesel to alarming Rs. five per litre was bound to increase the prices of other commodities which would affect agriculture, manufacturing, service sector, freights and transport. He said that single family would get only six cylinders of LPG on subsidized rates in a year and they will have to pay almost double the cost to obtain more than six cylinders.

Chief Minister said that as most of the population of the State travel in buses and enhancement in rates of diesel would directly affect the transportation charges due to increase in fare. He said that rates of daily need items such as milk, curd, cheese, bread and bakery products were also bound to increase as most of these items were procured from neighbouring States. He said that prices of fruits and vegetables were likely to increase too. As per the policy, the people now would get only three cylinders upto March 2013 on subsidized rates, he said.

Prof. Dhumal said that this would also have negative impact on environment as people in villages may prefer to use fuel-wood for cooking now onwards. He said that Central Government should roll back its decision to give relief to the common man who is already crushed under rising prices.