States can cut taxes to off-set fuel price hike: minister
Sunday, 17 February 2008, 20:30 IST
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Agartala: Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi on Sunday said state governments could reduce taxes on transport fuels to ease the recent price hike. "During the past four years, crude oil prices had increased 100 times in the international market. If necessary, state governments can consider reducing the surcharge to ease the fuel price hike," the minister told journalists here. "The fuel price should have been increased six months ago." Dasmunshi was here to boost the Congress party's campaign for the Feb 23 elections to the Tripura assembly. "Like in previous years, the upcoming budget would be more pro-people in view of the general elections next year." Finance Minister P. Chidambaram would present the budget for 2008-09 Feb 29 while Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav would present the rail budget for the coming fiscal Feb 26. Dasmunshi said that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government categorised the northeastern states as "investment-priority states" and wants to remove the backwardness of the region. The Congress leader strongly criticised the Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front government for its alleged failure in all fronts. "Due to the misrule of the Manik Sarkar-led Left Front government, Tripura has been lagging behind in the entire northeastern states," the minister said, quoting statistics of the eleventh finance commission.
Source: IANS
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