Rahul terms one paisa fuel price cut as 'prank'
New Delhi, May 30: Hours after the Centre on Wednesday reduced petrol and diesel prices by one paisa, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi mocked at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the childish response to the FuelChallenge that he had thrown at him and slammed him for his poor taste in pranks.
"Dear Prime Minister, you have cut the price of petrol and diesel today by 1 paisa. ONE paisa!?? If this is your idea of a prank, it is childish and in poor taste," tweeted Gandhi.
"P.S: A ONE paisa cut is not a suitable response to the #FuelChallenge I threw you last week," he added.
Prices of petrol and diesel were cut by one paisa on Wednesday after the Indian Oil Corp's (IOC) website initially showed a fall of around 50-60 paise per litre of the fuels.
The cut comes after 16 consecutive day of price increase since May 14 when fuel retailers ended the pre-Karnataka poll hiatus. For 19 days there were no movement in prices of both the fuels.
The Congress party on Tuesday slammed the Narendra Modi government for failing to reduce prices of petroleum products and said it was engaged only in managing elections and headlines.
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LPG crunch hits Mangaluru, canteens, hotels shut
Mangaluru: After major cities including Bengaluru and Chennai, the LPG shortage crisis has also struck Mangaluru now.
Reports are emerging about the closure of several hotels, canteens and street food outlets in the city.
The shortage is triggered by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has been worsening day by day.
According to reports, several hotels, canteens and street food preparation units have been forced to shut down operations in some areas due to the lack of commercial LPG cylinders.
In Dakshina Kannada district, hotels, restaurants and street food stalls have reportedly remained closed for the past two to three days in several locations.
On Saturday as well, hotel owners in many parts of the district, including Mangaluru city, faced difficulties in obtaining commercial gas cylinders.
Some establishments had stocked cylinders in advance and managed to continue operations for a few days.
However some owners said they may have no option but to shut down if the shortage continues.
The impact of the situation has also been felt in the fisheries sector.
Fishermen said that there is strong demand from abroad for fish varieties such as shrimp, anjal, manji and bondas, which are usually exported. However, restrictions on the movement of container ships have affected the fishing industry as well.
Leaders of the hotel owners’ associations in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts have urged the authorities to distribute LPG cylinders equally to their sector as well.
They warned that if the supply is not ensured, more hotels may have to shut down.
At present, district administrations have prioritised LPG supply for essential sectors including domestic households, educational institutions, hospitals, hostels, dormitories and religious institutions.
Meanwhile, a few hotels that still use fire wood for cooking have continued their operations.
Meanwhile, timber traders have also said that even firewood is now facing a shortage, as supply is unable to meet the rising demand.
