Auto workers demand rollback of CNG price hikes

 Autorickshaw workers under the banner of the Vijayawada City Auto Workers Union, affiliated to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), staged a protest near the Railway Station Clock Tower in Vijayawada on Tuesday, demanding an immediate rollback of the recent hikes in CNG prices.

Raising slogans against the increase in fuel rates, the protesters alleged that the escalating cost of CNG was severely affecting the livelihoods of autorickshaw and motor transport workers. They urged the government to intervene and regulate fuel prices to provide relief to the transport sector.

Addressing the gathering, Vijayawada City Auto Workers Union general secretary K. Durga Rao and Central City CITU president M. V. Sudhakar said a substantial portion of drivers’ daily earnings was being consumed by fuel expenses due to the continuous rise in petrol, diesel and CNG prices.

They alleged that government policies were placing an undue burden on transport workers while favouring corporate interests. Instead of reducing fuel prices during a period of economic hardship, the authorities were permitting repeated hikes, pushing many drivers and transport workers into financial distress, they said.

The leaders noted that the sharp increase in operational costs had made it increasingly difficult for workers to sustain their livelihoods. Some drivers were even considering leaving the profession altogether, they added. They warned that the crisis facing transport workers would worsen unless fuel prices were brought under control.

Among those who participated in the protest were Central City Auto Workers Union general secretary M. Hanumantha Rao, Railway Station Auto Workers Union leaders D. Kotayya and A. V. Reddy, and union members R. Subbaraju, M. Prabhudasu, D. Srinivasa Reddy, S. K. Nagoor, V. Ramarao, K. Srinivasa Rao, Saifulla and others.