Petro hike left in limbo

Chidambaram and Baalu stressed that the burgeoning oil pool account deficit was unsustainable in fiscal terms and something had to be done quickly. Baalu reeled off the already wellknown statistics saying the oil pool account deficit stood at Rs 15,500 crore as on March 31 this year and that this would rise to Rs 24,500 crore the same date next year.

He added that a whopping Rs 30 crore was being added to the deficit everyday and the Centre was in no position to continue with affairs as they stand today. Once the Centre’s stand was clear, the opponents to the price rise aired their views.

Yechury and Chitta Basu suggested that the Centre reduce the customs and excise duties on the oil products imported by the country. They added the Centre put back the Rs 4,429 crore it took from the oil pool account for the General Budget. This was shot down by Chidambaram who questioned how the government could do this when the Finance Bill was already passed and the tax structure was in place.

Deficits are something the country had to contend with said Chidambaram. Surjeet added his bit to the discussion and felt the poor had to be spared any further financial burden. Bihar Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav and Janata Dal working president Sharad Yadav agreed to this viewpoint.

This is the fifth time the UF has been unable to decide on this crucial issue. The Left has been offering its own solution to the vexed problem which the UF feels is not practical. Even now it is not clear when and how the hike will come. But it is almost certain that another raise in petrol and oil products is coming. It was being said that officials from the Petroleum Ministry are in touch with Left leaders in an attempt to find an amicable solution to the problem.

However, the absence of some important UF leaders gave the Front the excuse they were looking for to yet again postpone any decision making. Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and UF convenor Chandrababu Naidu left Delhi in the evening, CPI general secretary A B Bardhan was away in Hyderabad for his deputy’s funeral, West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu didn’t come as he was indisposed, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi was touring his state, Assam Chief Minister P K Mahanta was similarly occupied and Surjeet, though present, was suffering from dehydration.

But it appeared that the UF put off a hike in petro products as the earlier raise was made on the midnight of June 3, 1996. And since the UF was loathe to hike oil prices twice in a year the deferrment was made, sources indicated.

The other issues dealt with were the Fifth Pay Commission report, the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh and a reference to the Women’s Bill and corruption. The Centre said it would follow the precedent set in the case of the Fourth Pay Commission which means that a committee of secretaries will be set up to consult the Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) of the employees before arriving at a decision.

Defence Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav forced a discussion on the alleged harassment of Samajwadi Party workers in Uttar Pradesh and the UF later passed a resolution “condemning the blatantly discriminatory treatment being meted out to SP workers in UP”. The resolution also urged the Centre to see that workers of all parties were treated properly in UP.

Raja raised the issue of the Women’s Bill and corruption saying the promises made in the UF’s Common Minimum Programme (CMP) had to be fulfilled if the Front was to maintain its credibility among the people.