Statewide Protest By Odisha Congress Against Price Rise, Unemployment

Bhubaneswar: Accusing both the Central and state governments of adopting ‘anti-people policies, Congress staged demonstrations across Odisha on Friday as part of the party’s  nationwide protest against sky-rocketing prices of essential commodities, growing unemployment and GST on basic food items.

The demonstrators, led by Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) President Sarat Pattnayak, took out a rally from ADM office towards Raj Bhavan in the state capital shouting slogans and carrying placards in a bid to gherao the Governor’s House.

They were, however, stopped by the police and prevented from proceeding to Raj Bhavan, police said. The protesters staged a sit-in on the road raising slogans against the BJP-led NDA Government at the Centre and the ruling BJD in the state.

Several Congress leaders and workers were also detained as a preventive measures by the police while trying to break the barricade in their bid to take the rally further, sources said.

Demonstrations were also held in district headquarter towns across the state in protest against the policies of the Centre and the state.

Addressing the demonstrators, senior Congress leaders hashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi accusing him of having failed to manage the economy and steer the country in the right direction.

“The BJD government is a partner of BJP government at the Centre in all the anti-people policies, be it faulty implementation of GST and other policies. They are responsible for growing unemployment,” according to the PCC Chief.

The BJP had assured the people of this country that implementation of GST will give benefits to consumers but the result is just the opposite, the Congress leader claimed.

“The BJD government remained silent when the GST Council decided to levy taxes on basic food items consumed by poor people,” he said.

The BJP, which had promised ‘Ache Din’ (good times) ahead of the elections in 2014, has failed to keep the prices of petroleum products under control. Prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed during the NDA rule. The prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas had increased by 45 to 70 per cent since 2014, the Congress leaders alleged.

All sections of people, particularly the poor, farmers, low income group and middle class, are hit hard by the price rise, they said.

Though BJP had earlier claimed that the prices of all commodities would come down, it has now imposed 5 per cent GST on poor man’s food like flattened rice, puffed rice, molasses and flour. Unfortunately, the Odisha government did not oppose the Centre’s move, they added.

Similarly, BJP had made poll promise of generating two crore jobs in the country every year, but around 15 crore youths have been unemployed in the last eight years during its rule, the Congress leaders said.