UP Udyog Vyapar Pratinidhi Mandal to protest price hike on Apr 26

Lucknow, Apr 2 (UNI) Uttar Pradesh Udyog Vyapar Pratinidih Mandal, affliated to the Samajwadi Party (SP), has called a day-long demonstration in the state on April 26 to protest the price hike of essential commodities in the country.

Pratinidih's national president and SP Rajya Sabha member Banwari Lal Kanchal here told mediapersons that the Congress government at the Centre and the BSP government in the state were fully responsible for the rising prices of essential commodities.

'' Therefore, a state level agitation would be held on April 26 to agitate against the price hike,'' he announced.

Demanding ban on wholesale trading in the country, Mr Kanchal said the main reason for rise in prices of the foodgrains was trading.

'' Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram had banned trading of wheat and rice, but the prices could only be controled when ban was imposed on entire trading of the foodgrains,'' he said.

The traders' leader also demanded single tax rate under the VAT regime, reduction of Service tax from existing 12.5 per cent to 5 per cent, reduction and fixing of taxes on petroleum products at 10 per cent in the entire country and ban on corporate retail in order to control prices.

He further noted that corporate contract farming was also influencing the prices of the foodgrains in the country as they were purchased from the farmers at a very low price but sold in the market with over 60 per cent profit.

UNI MB JAS AKJ HT1452