‘Withdrawing LPG subsidy will burn a hole in our pockets’

Chennai

"When the Prime Minister urged people to give up their subsidy, I let go of it voluntarily thinking that it will do good to the country. When I heard of the recent announcement, it didn’t make any sense to me. People should be given the choice to give up their benefits for the country. We already pay so many taxes and paying close to 200 extra will only hurt people’s pocket." —Pameer Sethi, Businessman

"Though we have moved to pressure cookers and other energy-efficient cooking methods, we are still heavily dependent on LPG for our daily use. The price of everything is already high. We have to cut down on our spending. Shopping and eating out will have to be reduced now ."  —Sonia Mathew,  Working  professional

"Most families have only one breadwinner. January 2016 is too short a notice to plan the budget. Now that we are expected to pay extra, I’d like to know where the extra money is going. It should be made available on a public domain." —Amritha V, Businesswoman

"Switching to an electric induction cooker is not an option. With air-conditioners, computers and other gadgets that continue to increase an average middle-class family’s electricity consumption, we cannot just turn to electric induction cookers when the LPG subsidy is withdrawn. We have to grudgingly accept it, thinking of the larger good for society."  —Ram Kumar, Working professional

 LPG FILES

• At present, a household can get 12 cylinders (14.2 kg) for  419.26, while the market price of one cylinder is Rs 608. 
• In March, the government had asked people who can afford to voluntarily give up the subsidised LPG connection. 
• More than 3 lakh people in Tamil Nadu have already given up the subsidy. It is the fifth in the list, after Maharashtra, UP, Rajasthan and Karnataka. Chennai leads the list with 60,000 giving up the subsidy, followed by Coimbatore and Tiruvallur.