PRAJA-RAAG

(Research, Analysis, Advocacy Group - furthering on the discussions at praja.in) Koramangala, Bangalore 560034 12th Dec, 11 Under Secretary (Parl.& Mkt.), Ministry of Petroleum, Govt of India, 2nd floor, Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi - 110001 Dear Sir sub: Rs 1200 cr per annum LPG loot Attached is the copy of a letter addressed by us to the Chief Minister, Government of Karnataka, the contents being self-explanatory. Though the minister concerned had issued an order terminating close to 25 lakh obviously bogus gas connections, the Chief Minister reversed it, following a cabinet meeting where many of the other ministers opposed it, since very obviously they had a vested interest in perpetuating the status quo. An argument they put forward is that, any way, it is the central government that is bearing the burden. However, like we have stated in the letter, whether borne by the centre or the state, it is ultimately the tax payer who is shouldering the burden. Besides, it is these kinds of loots that are leading to the sky-rocketing inflation that we are facing all along. It is in this spirit, Sir, that we, as a citizen's group, are approaching you with a request to put an immediate stop to this racketeering, estimated in the range of a whopping Rs 1200 cr in Karnataka alone. We are sure the situation would not be too different in other states too, making for a mind-boggling sum, which can readily help balance the budget a lot better. We await to hear from you. Thanking you, Yours truly, for PRAJA-RAAG, sd/Muralidhar Rao (President)