UPA II: Limpets Paranoiac Goof (LPG)

Our popular Government with niradhar (unfounded) claims introduced ADHAR CARD LINKED LPG subsidy Scheme. Finally we are all now ended up with – LPG subsidies without insisting on Adhar Card, after several cases in courts, court orders.  How much Government has spent on this so far and how many citizens are still waiting for the correct Adhar Card. Our politician would not reveal such particulars. To overcome the complaints from the general public, against non-receipt of adhar card, government asked the general public to down-load the Card from computer. How many citizens in India can afford compute and how many villages and small towns have these facilities.

For, getting Adhar Card, how many working employees have how many times taken leave and went round the Adhar Card Registration Centres, apart from causing hardships to  the handicapped, senior citizens, even some of the centers have demanded money also from the general public for registering the names and their particulars. Finally no one knows, the statistics collected for the Adhar Card purpose how the outsourcing agencies are selling to unwanted elements and Business Corporates, foreign business houses for their business strategies and other objectives. Can the Government assure on this to its citizens.

Why this sudden innovative idea came to our popular Government,  when there are already Voter Cad, Pan Card, Ration Card ,  Bank Pass Book, Passport, apart from Employment Identity Cards for both Central and State Government.  Is it only to create additional hard-ship to the citizens or to divert the attention of general public from the scams our Government.

The above scheme is nothing, but,   that some -one in the political circle wanted to show to their bosses that he too can give better ideas to gain (cheap) popularity. The reason is Government has not stopped issuing new LPG Connections, and also failed to weed-out illegal connections, illegally refilling LPG into 5 Kg cylinders by unauthorized traders.  Added to this, recently Government has come out with a new idea that 5 Kg.LPG cylinders can be purchased from Petrol Out-lets. Whether these 5 Kg. cylinder users would get subsidy - there is no answer. This is one way of legalizing refilling of 5 Kg. cylinders and slowly making the consumer to get accustomed to pay more for the LPG, forgetting the subsidy to LPG against Adhar Scheme.

Other hardships caused to LPG consumers by way of verification by new terminology single household. If small income group are sharing a common kitchen with different LPG consumers they are put to untold hardships. The verification authorities expect that every consumer should have a Gas stove. Where a person is using common kitchen how the government can expect to have too many gas-stoves. Even in joint families (it is unfortunate) which is  against the wishes of government,  even each  head of the family -member is paying Income tax and holding Pan Card, questioning him to have separate gas-stove is nothing but questioning the liberty of the individuals beyond the fundamental rights. I think in the fundamental rights, rights of individual in the common kitchen of a joint family should be included by amending the constitution. When some verification official wanted to check the kitchen in my house, I questioned him what he wanted to check is it the  number of kitchen or the number of gas-stoves and told him that ours is a joint family and we do not have more than one kitchen, one gas-stove and one toilet (commode).

If a middle class citizen wants to use kerosene stove getting kerosene on ration card is ruled out. If he wants to buy kerosene he has to shell down Rs.35/- per liter. Now I have seen using burnt-oil in cremation ground as they are unable to get kerosene.

Recently one of our Politicians very openly supported increasing the gas price to an MNC stating that increasing the price will be helpful to producing more gas, indirectly hinting that the burden is going to be foot by general public and they will be preaching day in day out about austerity to the general public and that the politicians will continue to enjoy all benefits.

If our government is sincere in their approach to reduce import of Petroleum products they should reduce the number of cars used by Politicians, Government officials, and levy 300 to 400% more of road tax, registration fee for car owners who owns more than one vehicle and charge more for petrol also for such vehicles and 25% more for petrol for the car owners whose car value is more than 5 lacs. (Rupees Five Lakhs), and 200% more charges on commercial LPG cylinders supplied to all  star rated hotels and caterers to VVIPs and  VIP’s relatives marriages. Government should desist burdening the lower and middle class citizens frequently increasing the LPG price and power tariff. Government should withdraw this Adhar Card LPG subsidy scheme and each Income Tax payer should have the liberty of consuming the number of LPG cylinders without any restrictions as long as the LPG is used for domestic consumption.

As long as selfish politicians rule our country we may have several identity cards, the standard of living of the people cannot be improved and the Indian citizens will have to pay more and struggle to get their basic necessities/needs year after year, budget after budget. 

By: Narayanarao Murali