It used to be as rare as a defeat for the Indian team in the 20-20 format. Now like the defeats suffered regularly by the national team it seems to be happening every other day. Yes, the increase in the cost of fuel has been relentless. The increase in the cost of fuel means an increase in the price of essential commodities. This means an increase in the cost of living. However in all this, salaries never increase. Now with the festival season on, how does one manage the expected increase in expenditure for gifts along with those of the daily necessities?
For Shimron Nathan a student has seen the effects in her family. She said “My family has most definitely cut costs on the festivities this year and also cut down on travelling for unnecessary reasons. It’s unfortunate to stop celebrating just to maintain enough finances to support oneself, let alone an entire family. The fuel prices affect not only the spending for festivities but it affects more important things like grocery shopping or even other utility bills. These prices have everyone complaining. Not only the working class”. She went on to say that it was obvious the concerns of the working class did not interest the government. This had certainly reduced the budgets for everyone. Academic Ameya Nayak felt the petrol hike was insane to say the least .She said “The working class works with the objective of earning reasonably in order to spend a comfortable decent life however, with the way the fuel prices are escalating, it looks like it’s time to switch to cycles again! And with festivals approaching, it’s indeed going to squeeze out the life from a middle class Goan. Our society is oddly shaped, such that the middle class man is always left to suffer the imbalance and that’s exactly what is happening. The need of the hour is to re-think these decisions and help us make our lives more balanced and affordable.”
Of course how affected by the increase in cost of fuel could be relative. Namita Nundy a communication consultant said “We feel the pinch in Goa as we are not used to paying such high prices for petrol, ever!. Also the distances in Goa make it even more difficult. We tend to travel nothing less than 50 kms per day for work, the travel spends are definitely going over budget. Festival spending per se will not get affected.” Well every is entitled to their opinion. Adv Caroline Collasso felt with people just getting their jobs or businesses back on course it would be difficult to handle such exorbitant petrol bills. Highways she said had been built but the petrol bills made it unaffordable to use their vehicles.
Colin D’Cruz, a musician, felt everyone was now used to it. He said “Every time the Government is broken, petrol prices go up. I hope our government makes some money soon so that the petrol price comes down. Meanwhile someone has invented a car that can run on water, I am afraid the price of water will rise very soon”. Anjali K Gupta an entrepreneur who grew up in Goa said “I don’t go by scooty but I can see my father becoming concerned with the rise in gasoline prices, which is burning a greater hole in our pockets. When I asked him how much he spends on petrol every day, he said Rs 100 used to be adequate, but now he will travel by public transportation, limit his spending on necessities, or will save enough to travel by his own vehicle, which is too painful for me to see. Since he is in the medical department, he has not worked from home. The stress of inflation and rising gas prices is excruciating. Obviously, it will have an impact on our expenditure”.
Avelino De Sa who has spent his life fighting for the rights of the physically disabled said the government would have to reduce petrol prices to ease the burden on the common man. Bharat Kamat suggested a way out of it all. He said “Post Pandemic many businesses have shut and jobs have been lost. This has hurt tax collection and an inept bureaucracy has only one advice- Increase Taxes. And the best way is to tax fuel which is used by everyone. The households which were already reeling because of loss of income now have to shell out more. Prices of every item are going up. To lessen the burden on the poor Indians, it is time for innovation. Not only for businesses but also for the government. The Government has to cut red tape and allow businesses to be set up and flourish. Collection of taxes is easy then. Otherwise many Indians will experience doomsday.” Another individual who has spent time in the corporate world and in business Jervis Pereira said “The working class can’t afford this 260% tax rate and rising prices of fuel. It impacts every item that consumers use. Vegetables have gone up 20%, additionally food at restaurants is up by 10 to 15%, delivery costs, transportation and essentials are all up. The common man is not getting a commensurate rate increase in payments to keep up with this. Every day that the price is high is crippling the economy. The moment people stop consumption, money flow stops. It’s economics 101.”
That is the state of affairs on the ground. It can be safely predicted, it will be a much muted affair.
