CHENNAI: Condemning the Union government’s decision to increase petrol and diesel prices by Rs 3 from midnight, Opposition parties.

On Friday warned that the hike would trigger a steep rise in the prices of essential commodities and impose an additional burden on households already struggling with rising living costs.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary P Shanmugam said the fuel price hike would create a chain reaction affecting people’s day-to-day lives and sharply increase the prices of essential goods.

In a statement, he said families would be pushed into severe hardship “like a boat caught in a storm” because of the increase in fuel prices.

He urged the Centre to provide subsidy for petrol and diesel and immediately roll back the hike.

Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi general secretary and Villupuram MP D Ravikumar termed the increase “only the beginning” and cautioned that fuel prices could rise further in the coming days.

Strongly condemning the BJP government’s “so-called austerity measures” and the fuel price hike, he said the latest increase in petrol and diesel prices should not be viewed as the end of the burden on the public.