Agony of my first by-line

The ‘Kirit Parikh committee’ is set up to recommend a fuel price policy, is due to submit its report on today (February 3). It is believed that this committee wants to make petrol and diesel pricing completely free of government intervention. The panel has recommended only six cylinders annually to a household. If additional cylinder is needed then it would cost double of the rate of a cylinder which is now priced at Rs 300 for 14.8 kg LPG.

Before two days, on Monday, my first by-line appeared on the very same issue but with different angle. I focused on the commercial uses of these LPG, subsidized for common family. I found while reporting that situation was worst than my expectation. Do you know guys; not a single shop I found where authorized commercial cylinders were being used. Not for show even.

One of civilians, whose version has been included in my report, lamented over the stringent rule of applying for refilling the cylinder after at least 21 days from last delivery date of cylinder. He complained a lot, but one line in those would be pertinent here that whenever a crisis appears, administration imposes restrictions on the common man instead of those who are illegally involved and are one of the main cause of the existing problem.

An interesting fact that these days a lot of hues and cries are on the surface related to the LPG crisis and administration is continuously promising to remove the crisis and to take stern action against illegal uses of LPG. Seeking version for my story, when I talked to Assistant Food Controller, Vivek Saxena, what he stated, have been written in the story. Apart from this in the response of his question, I detailed him with the proper addresses, of the places of illegal uses of cylinders. (It could be seen anywhere without giving special effort through our naked eyes). He befooled me after saying that we are going to start a drive again to stop such uses from very tomorrow. I realized from his extra-sweet treatment for me but at that moment my enthusiasm was not ready to heed anything apart from by-line.

Friends, it’s quite heart-breaking that not a single LPG cylinder had been lifted from the market due to my first honest effort. When I am passing through those shops where I went for survey, they are treating me with very dread smile. And now the latest buzz, Kirit Parikh committee’s recommendations…………….