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Protests in State

By Staff reporter

GUWAHATI, June 26 � The clearance given by the empowered Group of Ministers of the Union Government to the bid to de-control petrol and to hike the prices of diesel, kerosene and cooking gas, has evoked severe protests in the State. While almost all the organisations have criticized the decision, some of them have threatened stirs to mount pressure on the Government to revoke the decision.

The All Assam Students� Union (AASU) today burnt the effigy of the Union Petroleum Minister Murli Deora in protest against the above decision of the Group of Ministers. All Guwahati Students� Union, the city unit of the AASU, burnt the effigy of the Petroleum Minister on the Mahatma Gandhi Road at Uzanbazar and in front of the Janata Bhawan.

The State wing of the All India Road Transport Workers� Federation has called for a 24-hour chakka bandh agitation and a general strike from 6 am on June 29 in protest against the decision of the Group of Ministers. The State unit of the Federation has made an appeal to the operators of all private and public sector vehicles, including the under-ASTC services and trucks and buses and light vehicles to keep their vehicles off the roads.

It has also called upon the people to register their protest against the above �anti-people� decision of the Group of Ministers by resorting to a general strike.

The State wing of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has extended full support to the above call of the Federation�s State unit. The decision of the Government to effect hike in the prices of petroleum products would affect both the agricultural and industrial sectors of the country.

The workers and employees should come up unitedly to defeat this �anti-people� decision of the Government through a vehement agitation, said the CITU unit.

The opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) said in a statement here today that it would register protest against the above decision of the Central Government through its proposed district level dharna programmes on June 28. The party had initially proposed the June 28 dharna programmes in protest against the multi-crore NC Hills Autonomous Council scam. Its youth wing Asom Yuba Parishad has also demanded immediate steps to roll back the decision.

Members of the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad burned the effigy of Union Petroleum Minister under the aegis of its Guwahati District Committee.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) held a meeting and took out a procession under the aegis of its Kamrup (Metropolitan) District Committee in protest against the above decision of the Group of Ministers. Speakers at the meeting wanted immediate steps to roll back the prices and to distribute 14 essential items through the fair price shops.

Members of the Guwahati City District Committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party burnt the effigy of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and demanded speedy steps to roll back the prices.

Members of the Guwahati Division Insurance Employees Association organised a massive protest demonstration in front of the Guwahati Divisional Office of LICI against the above decision of the Union government. An impromptu meeting was also held on the occasion and it was addressed among others by Bhabendra Kumar Kalita, general secretary of the association.

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