Cold water has been poured yet another time on the government's plan of deregulating the oil sector and freeing up the oil prices. And this time around, there has been more than just one culprit. First is the fuel price itself. When the talk of de-regulation first started doing the rounds, oil prices were perched quite comfortably. However, with the same inching up and touching the government threshold mark of US$ 67 per barrel, politicians seemed to have developed cold feet. For they do not want to greet the public with a fuel price hike, which at the current crude oil price would have become imperative. Secondly, with elections staring in the face in one of the states and also with one of the government's biggest allies eyeing elections at its home state, price revision could prove counterproductive. The oil ministry however is unwilling to admit that its hands are tied and instead, giving out assurances that although the decontrol of oil prices is definitely on its agenda, its implementation will have to wait. That's what we have been doing all these years, haven't we?
Look at government inefficiency, food prices have galloped at an alarming rate over the last few months. Some blame it on the poor monsoons. Some blame it on hoarding by greedy middlemen. In my opinion, the government unknowingly itself is a massive hoarder. As per a report in a financial daily, the stock of rice and wheat in government granaries is way above the minimum requirement. Sadly, much of this excess stock is stored in the open. It either rots or feeds pests. In my view, this is a national shame. We cannot get the basics right in such a crucial area when food prices are spiraling out of control and millions of Indians still go hungry. Such stocks should be stored properly and released in small lots to stabilise prices.
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