All India Congress Committee spokesperson Supriya Shrinate on July 14 claimed that high prices are adding salt to injury, especially during an unprecedented pandemic, as people battle both the dreaded coronavirus and the Modi government’s callous mismanagement of the economy.
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Addressing reporters at the party office in Bengaluru, she said the latest reading of inflation figures is alarming. Retail inflation was nearly 6.3%, well above the RBI’s target of 6%. The urban consumer price index (CPI) has risen from 5.91% in May to 6.37% in June. Core inflation (which excludes both fuel and food) has moved up steeply in a month from 5.5% to 5.8%. Food inflation was at 5.58%. Pulses inflation was at 10.01%. Fruits inflation was at 11.82%, while oils and fats inflation was at 34.78%.
Mismanagement of the economy by the Centre has rendered many people jobless, reduced wages and left many impoverished. Instead of putting money in the hands of people, the ‘insensitive’ government is forcing them to pay higher prices for basic goods, she alleged.
The Congress leader claimed that 23 crore people have slipped below the poverty line, undoing almost all the good work done by the UPA government, which pulled 27 crore people out of poverty during its 10-year tenure.
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Nearly two crore people have lost their jobs in April and May, she alleged adding 97% people were earning lower wages today. Indians have been forced to withdraw almost ₹1.25 lakh crore out of their provident fund, she claimed.
She said high import duties make some essential imports, such as palm oil and pulses, expensive, resulting in higher retail prices. Multiple and high rates of GST for goods of daily use, such as toothpaste, soap and tea, are burdening the common man.
The Congress wants the Central government to immediately bring relief to people by reducing the prices of petrol, diesel and LPG. The party will raise the issue of high inflation burdening the common man in the forthcoming session of Parliament, she said.