Massive protests against price rise across India

Guwahati /Imphal /Shimla, Mar 7 (ANI): Various political parties and other groups staged massive demonstrations the against price rise in different Indian cities on Saturday.

In Assam, the Assam Mahila Parishad, the women's wing of regional party Assam Gana Parisahd (AGP), vent their ire against the Congress-led Central government.

Over 20,000 women moved through the streets of Guwahati to register their protest.

"It is spontaneous gathering because women have to manage everything, - women have to manage house, hearth and it is woman who suffers the most when prices increase a lot. So women have spontaneously come together and women have come together to protest," said Alaka Sharma, chief of AMP and a state deputy.

Protests also rocked Manipur , with trade unions like the All India Trade Union Congress, an affiliate of Communist Party of India, All Manipur Trade Union Council and All Manipur Nupi Marup staging a mass demonstration in Imphal.

The trade unions sought immediate measures from the Central Government to control the price rise, stop disinvestment in profit-making state-run companies and provide social security to labourers in both the organised and unorganised sector.

In Shimla, over 2,500, BJP leaders and workers hit the street with placards denouncing the price rise. They also raised slogans against the Prime Minister.

Rising inflation, particularly in the sphere of food items, has sparked recurring street protests across India and put political pressure on the Congress-led UPA Government to find a solution without hurting economic recovery.

The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, said on Friday that winter-sown crop prospects were "very encouraging", but the country needs to pay farmers a good price for their produce to boost output further.

A good harvest is likely to bring down food inflation, which accelerated to nearly 18 percent in late February from a year ago, and also put pressure on the government to export wheat and rice as official agencies do not have enough storage space. (ANI)