Jatri Kalyan Samity, a passenger welfare association of Bangladesh, on Saturday protested the unreasonably increased fuel price and demanded withdrawal of the ongoing transport strike.
Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, secretary general of the association, made the demand at a press conference at Dhaka Reporters' Unity with a call to cancel the government’s decision to increase fuel price and put an end to ‘anarchy in transport sector’ in the name of strike.
The government has made an exclusive profit for the last six years by selling fuel oil at high rates due to low prices in the global market world Tk 630 billion, he added.
He claimed that it was a suicidal decision to increase the price of oil by 23 per cent during this difficult time for the people of the country, adding that the government has the capacity to subsidies Tk 60 billion annually.
Sharifuzzaman Sharif, a member of the organisation's advisory council, said that the way fuel price is hiked is illegal.
The concerned ministry does not have the power to increase the price. Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) can do this following a hearing, he added.
