Chitwan Activists to Protest Fuel Price Hike by Pushing Motorcycles

Chitwan. A different kind of protest is scheduled to take place in Chitwan on Sunday against the excessive price hike of petroleum products and various taxes imposed by the government. 

The Chitwan branch of 'Gari Khan Deu', led by Gen Z activist Miraj Dhungana, is organizing a protest rally by pushing motorcycles by hand instead of riding them.

The rally, which will start from Chaubiskothi in Chitwan at 4:30 PM on Sunday, will proceed to Lions Chowk. Bishu Lama Gurung is leading this movement, according to a statement issued by Gari Khan Deu. Dhungana stated that it is unjust to impose additional tax burdens on the public during a time of economic crisis when the prices of everything from daily necessities to food items have skyrocketed.

According to him, the government imposes six types of taxes on petroleum products: customs duty, pollution fee, road maintenance fee, infrastructure development tax, value-added tax, and green tax. Currently, with the price of petrol reaching 217 rupees per liter, the government collects approximately 65 to 70 rupees in taxes alone.

Dhungana stated that the objective of the protest is not to demand petrol at a loss from the government, but to pressure it to remove the unnecessary taxes imposed during the crisis. He added that the main feature of this rally is that the participants will push or pull their vehicles by hand to the destination instead of riding motorcycles, thereby drawing the government's attention.