LAHORE, Jan 18: The All Pakistan Trade Unions Federation has protested against the regular increase in POL prices and demanded immediate abolition of the Oil Advisory Committee and restoration of the old procedure of fixing POL prices.

Speaking at a federation meeting here on Sunday, Secretary-General Gulzar Ahmed Chaudhry said the government was publicising provision of subsidised atta to the poor and triggering a general price hike by raising the POL prices every fortnight.

He said the petroleum advisory committee required to be dissolved as it had become the POL 'blackmarketing' committee. He was also critical of the silence of the political and religious parties over the continuous increase in POL prices, costs of utilities and essential commodities.

It seemed that the political parties were hand in gloves with the government because the government had doubled the pay and allowances of its legislators, he said. The federation would observe a black day on Jan 27 to mourn the anti-people policies of the government, he added.