Kerala's fuel price hike pains Mahe natives

MAHE: Kerala government will start its social security cess by hiking Rs 2 for petrol and diesel in the state. The people will choke by the rising cost of living and will soon turn to public modes of transportation for good. The move will see a beeline queue in front of petrol pumps for the coming days, not anywhere in Kerala but in Mahe.

In Mahe, petrol costs just Rs 93.80 per liter while diesel cost RS 83.72 per liter. The travel from Poozhithala to Mahe bridge is just 1km. However, after the hike in petrol prices in Kerala, the small 1 km distance can only be covered at least passing through the jam in one hour. The long queue from the petrol pump is spreading its tail into the roads creating chaos across the union territory.

Apart from this, during the late hours of the night, buses also reach Mahe to fill a full tank of diesel. Additional cans are also brought in by these people to hoard at least 1400 liters of fuel for later use.

Pandakkal is a small revenue village near Mahe. The village has a total of 8 petrol pumps and 20 foreign liquor shops. All these shops are clustered together and now the localities are confounded seeing the sea of people reaching their villages blocking their day-to-day activities. This is also a summer that is seeing no respite from the sweltering heat. The Mahe natives had enough and look to reach the authorities to find a way of escape from these undulating crowds.