Governments tend to be concerned about public welfare and policy measures to reduce inflation when elections are around the corner. On Thiruvonam day, the central government reduced the price of domestic cooking gas by Rs200 as an Onam gift. The price of gas has been going up without any mercy for quite some time. Consumers were paying more than Rs 1100 for a cylinder of gas, including the wages of the home delivery worker. With a reduction of Rs 200, the price will come down to Rs 910. The wages of the home delivery staff are in addition to this. Central action happened without anyone requesting it. The explanation is that the gas price has been reduced as a gift in consideration of Onam and Raksha Bandhan. Whatever the reason, this is a move that will bring joy to crores of cooking gas consumers.

It is said that the upcoming elections are what prompted the government to take such action now. Assembly elections in five states are fast approaching. The Lok Sabha elections are also near. The term of the present central government ends in May. Rumours have spread that there is a plan to hold the general election in December because of this. Some see the reduction in gas prices as a prelude to that. In any case, there may be more decisions like this concerning the election. The opposition groups have also taken the field with big promises of what they are going to give to the people if they come to power. Appropriate measures should also be taken by the administration to deal with them and bring voters to their side. For the general public, the only benefit is such small concessions.

The exorbitant rise in prices of all types of fuel, including cooking gas, is behind the common man's family budget being thrown into disarray. Changes in fuel prices have also led to a surge in inflation across the country. Fuel prices in India have been increasing uncontrollably even as crude oil prices have been falling significantly. Although the Congress party's allegation that the Modi government has made a profit of more than eight lakh crore rupees in the last nine years only from cooking gas sounds a little exaggerated, there is no reason to disbelieve it completely. The approach of robbing the people can be seen in the case of petrol and diesel as well. Just as the government is ready to reduce the price of gas by Rs 200, they should also be ready to make a rational change in the price of petrol and diesel. The fuel sector should not be seen as just a cash cow. While it is true that their exorbitant prices greatly strengthen the coffers of the central and state governments, the lives of the people are becoming more difficult along with it. Fuel price hike is certainly one of the most popular campaign tools during elections.