Let car, bike owners pay up for fuel, says Union minister Alphons Kannanthanam
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Union minister of state for IT and tourism Alphons Kannanthanam has justified the rising petrol prices, saying those who can afford to own cars should pay for the fuel.
The government has to ensure the welfare of the poor by sourcing the revenue from petrol prices, he told reporters at the BJP state headquarters here. If the state governments allowed, petroleum and liquor would be brought under the GST, he said.
His comments have come at a time when the fuel prices are at a three-year high even as international crude prices have crashed.
He maintained that the Modi government had decided to hike petrol prices to improve the life of the downtrodden. The BJP government is trying to provide them food, house, toilet, education and labour.
“So we are going to tax people who can afford to pay. Somebody who has a car, bike etc is not starving. Somebody who can afford to pay has to pay,” he said.
“Prime Minister Modi has a huge dream for the poor of India. Thirty per cent of Indians go to bed without a square meal a day. There are several people who do not have access to toilet or a proper dwelling house,” he added.
He maintained that inflation is only four per cent in the country currently which is half a percentage less than the cut-off prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India.
The state is limping in development as projects are not completed in a time-bound manner, he said and added that the old glory the state had achieved in the IT sector was a distant dream.
