Prices of essentials continue to skyrocket, some have doubled or even trebled: Bhalla

Steep rise in prices of essential commodities burning a hole in common man’s pocket

Jammu, 30 June: The recent surge in prices of essential goods, especially food items, has made the common man’s life difficult.  If prices of day-to-day items keep rising like this, it’s going to make surviving for common man much more difficult. This constant rise has forced people to change their diet, avoid expensive food items and buy cheaper stuff in bulk and eat the same day after day. This was stated by JKPCC Working President Raman Bhalla while interacting with various deputations at his residence.

Speaking on the occasion ,Bhalla said that government seems to have done very little in terms of regulating prices. At the end of the day, it is not the rich ones or the business class that suffers, but the common man. BJP government talks most promisingly about the “common man agenda” when it comes to lapping up votes but fails in times of real crisis.Even restaurants have increased prices of items, making even that once-in-a-while visit a rarity. Food prices have increased by 20 per cent in the last two months and by 40 per cent compared to last year.The steady rise in prices of food items is a cause for concern. With little resources available, it is becoming difficult for the common man to manage his budget. The way things are run here, it is a case of the poor remaining poor and the rich getting richer.

Bhalla said even the tax laws favour the rich, those in the salaried class suffers the most because they pay high Income Tax and in return get little. Inflation keeps rising every day and vegetable prices are shooting up. Govt is responsible for all this.  Have BJP leaders already forgotten their duty towards the people? What happened to all the promises they made during election time? It is high time they delivered what they had promised. Also, petrol and diesel prices have increased. All this stems from the Central government’s inability to curtail prices at the grassroots level.

On the national front present government already seems to have flopped. This is the main issue pending with the government now and instead of bickering with each other, all BJP leaders should put their heads together and come up with a plan to bring down prices of food items. The government is not doing enough to regulate rising prices of essential commodities. In fact, it’s just turning a blind eye to the problem. The prices seem to be headed for the skies. From food to water, everything is becoming unreachable for the common man.This is quite a return gift to all those who voted for leaders to be in power, added Bhalla.

Bhalla observed that every year, we hear the same news of large-scale destruction of crops and inadequate water in lakes due to erratic rain, but it’s impossible that there is no solution to this. The government must have a back-up plan to face situations like these and have some measures in place.It just seems like the common man is being taken for a ride.J&K government is doing nothing to bring down the prices of vegetables and other essential commodities. It is high time the government identified the reasons for such a phenomenal rise in prices of so many items of daily use. The retail market has never been consumer-friendly; it is ready to hike prices at the slightest opportunity.

Bhalla said it should be possible to subsidize prices of indispensable items like rice, dal, sugar and oil and lessen the burden on the common man’s purse. If the prices do not come down, he will be driven to take loans from banks to keep his kitchen fire burning.  The retail market has never been consumer-friendly; it is ready to hike prices at the slightest opportunity.On the one hand, household budgets are going for a toss with the prices of essential commodities skyrocketing and on the other hand, the government keeps feeding them with inflation figures that seem to conjure up a very rosy picture,a picture that is not at all in keeping with reality.

Bhalla said even as the common man pays through his nose for very basic pulses, data released recently has pegged inflation at a mere 17.5 per cent.I feel this economic data is misleading. In reality, it could be more than 25 per cent and it seems the government has not done much on its part to regulate prices of essential commodities. Evidently, the ground realities of the market are far removed from these inflation figures that are being supplied by the government.

Bhalla claimed alarming rise in prices of essential commodities is causing untold misery to the middle-class due to hoarding by certain elements. The government has totally failed to control the matter. It seems the government is working hand-in-glove with hoarders and cheating the common people.In all this, the prices of essentials continue to skyrocket — some have doubled or even trebled.It seems there is no special move on part of the government to tackle the situation. It seems to be having other priorities and taking action to control rising prices is not one of them.It the price rise situation continues to be ignored, it might soon lead to a disastrous situation that could possibly result in protests and violent outbursts, added Bhalla.

Bhalla said with rise in inflation, the purchasing power of average Indian families has also come down. With tomatoes priced at around Rs 120 per kg and ginger at Rs 400 per kg, people are being compelled to forgo these items.He emphasized the urgent need for government intervention to alleviate the burden of price hikes on poor families.  Over the past 3-4 days, tomatoes have been priced exorbitantly high, ranging from Rs 80 to Rs 120 per kg. There is an average price trend of Rs 30 to 35 for per kg of tomato and Rs 120 to 150 for per kg ginger, Bhalla said.

(NOTE: PRESS RELEASE PUBLISHED AS RECEIVED)