Petrol Price Increase

Hai Mr.Malik. Here is one comment I wrote two days back. I shall follow it in next with one more as here 'time is out'.Guptan Veemboor (Bangalore) All are crying that increase in petrol price is burden to the 'common man' or it's Hindi equivalent 'aam aadmi'. The problem is with the definition of the term 'common man'. One Mr.Sachin has commented to my query 'who is a common man' the definition that 'the common man is one to whom one party says "our hand is with you" and then slap him with hand . That is common man.'. I liked that definition. It is quite witty. But that is a very broad definition. My definition is it is the people who travel in the 'cattle class'. It is not the cattle class Mr.Shashi Taroor has mentioned. It is those who travel by the dusty, dirty stuffy and overcrowded 2nd class unreserved compartments of our railways or those hanging precariously on the footboards of our city buses or hanging perilously with a finger to the window bars of a suburban train or those who have never traveled and lived all their life in the arid villages in utter poverty that they have a good meal once in a week or those who commit suicide due to debt or poverty. I cannot think that these people will be affected if the price of petrol goes sky high. In fact their indirect burden of paying tax (indirectly) to the government when they buy their meager provisions and other essentials. It is those 'little grains of sand and little drops of water' which subsidize the petrol filled in BMWs and Merces and all other four wheelers and two wheelers. This agitation is an agitation of the haves and not of the have-nots. The champions of the poor Left and their virulent opponent but avowedly pro poor Mamata also doing. Petrol price should be made such that it can live its own life without subsidies. I am a loner in this.
Hai Mr.Malik, Guptan Veemboor (Bangalore) In my opinion the real problem is lack of public transport in our cities. Had there been a very good public transport system middle class will not be depending on their own personal transport. And an increase in petrol price will not affect them as it is doing now. I have heard that in Singapore or London public transport is so good that one need not have a private vehicle at all. Lack of efficient public transport has made people to buy cars and two wheelers. Since these mode of transport occupy more road space per person roads become congested. When road become congested even if number of public transport vehicles increase due to traffic jams due to congestion on the roads, one cannot depend on the public transport. Then one feels that a car can take him or her faster to the destination and contribute to further congestion. It is a vicious circle and the problem compounds. Governments liberilisation has made this situation. Right from the beginning more stress should have been on mass transport system. Even pollution level would not have been this much. I would suggest that the remedy as of now will be restrict private vehicle movement in central areas ( or in American parlance down town area). In London central London is restricted for private vehicles I think. There was a news recently that our embassy in London has due of few million pound as fine for taking its vehicles in central London. That should be implemented in our cities and simultaneously increase public transport system. Only buses and taxis should ply in central area and for private vehicles put punitive toll. Like petrol diesel also should be de-controlled and trucks carrying food grain from FCI godowns to PDS godowns cash subsidy can be given depending on the distance they have run on government job. For all private running they also should pay market price. Needless to say diesel for cars and other personal vehicles they should pay market price.
Mr.Malik, I have sent two posts and this is the last word. Will the auto manufacturers allow the government to increase public transport system as their profit will nose dive. Who knows this agitation against petrol price increase has not tacit support from them? There were rumours that in Singur agitation there were rival business interest also involved. Already they slashed Rs50,000/-. Is it not an indication that they are getting panicky? With best regards, Guptan