KATHMANDU: Five student organizations affiliated with the opposition coalition have urged the Nepal Oil Corporation (NPC) to immediately stop the trend of accumulating profits and putting price hikes on the shoulders of consumers.

Rajiv Dhungana of Nepal Students Union, Ranjit Tamang of ANNFSU (Revolutionary), Sudesh Parajuli of ANNFSU, Rupnarayan Shrestha of Samajwadi Student Union, and Bimal Pokhrel of ANNFSU (Sixth) handed over a memorandum to a Nepal Oil Corporation today.

They have demanded an immediate repeal of the price hike of petroleum products. “It is completely wrong for an oil corporation, which has made huge profits, to raise prices under the pretext of a slight rise in prices in the international market,” the memorandum said.

They have warned that they will launch a strong agitation on behalf of the United Students’ Organization (USO) if the price hike of petroleum products is not immediately withdrawn.

The memorandum claims that the tax imposed on petroleum products is only intended to hurt the people.

“Is it justifiable to impose such a hefty tax on daily necessities?” The memorandum said. The student leaders have also challenged to justify the transparency of the amount levied by the corporation on various topics including customs duty, road maintenance tax, infrastructure development tax, pollution fee, value stabilization fund, value-added tax, corporate income tax.

They have also requested to stop the work of imposing an additional burden on the citizens by depositing an additional amount in inappropriate titles which could not be spent.

The student organizations have also demanded to make good use of the price stabilization fund to provide relief to the consumers during the epidemic. “Administrative reform in the corporation, control of the black market, reduction of unnecessary expenses and control of inflation,” the memorandum states.

The student organizations have also demanded to expedite the process of implementing the agreement reached between the student movement and Nepal Oil Corporation to make LP gas available to students at concessional rates on the basis of identity cards by making two-color cylinders in the past.