CPI Condemns LPG Price Hike: Demands Subsidy Restoration and Cylinders for the Poor

The National Secretariat of the Communist Party of India issued today (April 8, 2025) the following statement:

CPI condemns the Modi government's decision to hike the price of LPG by ₹50 per cylinder. This increase raises the burden on Ujjwala scheme beneficiaries from ₹500 to ₹550, and on general consumers from ₹803 to ₹853. At a time when millions are already struggling under soaring food inflation, high fuel costs and falling incomes, this move is yet another attack on the livelihood of the working people. 

Ever since the BJP came to power, LPG prices have seen a consistent rise, even during periods when global crude oil prices have remained historically low. Instead of passing the benefit to the people, the Modi regime has diverted it to benefit oil companies and private corporates. The complete erosion of the LPG subsidy system has left the poor and middle classes vulnerable to market volatility and state apathy. 

Adding to this, the government has once again hiked excise duties on petrol and diesel, even as the economy is facing turbulence. The recent stock market crash, triggered by global recession fears and the Trump administration’s tariff threats, reflects the government’s failure to protect India’s economy from external shocks. 

The CPI demands that a consumer-oriented subsidy of ₹250 per LPG cylinder be reinstated for general consumers immediately. For those under the Below Poverty Line category and enrolled in the PM Ujjwala Scheme, at least six cylinders per year must be provided without payment. Access to clean cooking fuel is not a luxury—it is a basic necessity and a right. 

The Modi government’s anti-people economic policies are deepening inequality, fuelling mass distress and pushing millions into hardship. The CPI calls upon all progressive and democratic forces to unite in opposing this assault on the common people.

(Roykutty)

Office Secretary