Tamil Nadu BJP president L. Murugan on Friday claimed that the DMK government was responsible for the increase in the cost of essential commodities and construction materials, especially cement, in the State and asked Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to take steps to curb the price rise.
“At a time when people have lost their livelihoods due to COVID-19, price rise is a big burden on them. Price rise of construction materials such as cement and others, and increase in the price of products such as cooking oil, cooking essentials and vegetables have caused a big burden to the people,” Mr. Murugan said in a statement. He said it was condemnable that prices of all products had gone up during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Blaming the DMK government in the State for the sudden increase in prices, Mr. Murugan said, “Within a month of their coming to power, prices of many products have gone up. Cement prices, especially, have risen very quickly to ₹520 per bag from ₹370 per bag. This is shocking.”
Prices of other construction materials too have gone up, he said. “One unit of m-sand which was ₹5,000 has gone up to ₹6,000; cost of gravel stones have gone up to ₹4,200 per unit from ₹3,600; prices of TMT bars have risen to ₹75,000 per tonne from ₹18,000,” he said.
Mr. Murugan said during the previous DMK regime too, the cost of construction materials had gone up. But then Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi threatened to nationalise cement plants after which prices had reduced, he said. Mr. Murugan wondered why Mr. Stalin has not taken any such step now.
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