How Will Government Stop Exploitation?

If a taxi driver charges Rs.200 or Rs.150 i.e. double or 150% of normal fare for carrying a passenger from one place X to another place Y ( say,normal fare is Rs.100 ) keeping in view time on which the passenger needed  taxi service or the urgency of the passenger, it is said that taxi driver is looter. 

Passenger will say taxi fare should be maximum Rs.100 but driver charged him Rs.200 or Rs.150 exploiting his need and keeping in view the non-availability of other options to him during that critical hour.

Same allegation is levelled to a Auto Driver or Rickshaw puller when they demand a little bit more fare than the normal fare for a particular distance of travel at a particular period of time.

But if a government demands higher fare for a ticket from Howrah to Delhi using some specified trains like Rajdhani or Duranto ,it may not be called as a normal rise in fare. Paucity of train is not sudden . If a passenger is sick or has to go from Howrah to Delhi due to some other urgent work , he will have to pay 110% to 150% of normal fare depending upon percent of berth already sold out as per prevailing railway fare rules. 

It means Railway or you say Government is demanding higher fare or say in more crude word that the government is also  exploiting the passengers whose plan of tour has suddenly arisen due to sickness or some other important reason. Here Government is looting the passenger in the same way as a taxi driver or auto driver or a rickshaw puller demands  higher fare from a passenger in time of crisis. 

In the same way ,if a passenger book a ticket for air travel two months in advance , air fare will be minimum , say Rs.2000 from one place to other. But if he tries to book the same ticket two or three day before his scheduled date of departure, he will have to pay much higher fare for the same travel. 

Indian Airlines or any private flight service provider charges higher fare from a passenger depending upon how many days before the date of tour , the ticket is intended to be booked , They charge fare higher in the range of more than 110% or normal fare to 1000% of normal fare if a passenger plan his tour suddenly or at short notice and tries to book ticket for air travel from any airlines on the same day of travel or say  a few day before it.

It means Indian Airlines or any flight service provider exploit the passenger who is in urgent need of tour and when other options are not available , even train tickets are not available and private car travel is too much time consuming and costly. 

To make it more clear, Government exploit passenger when due to sickness of family member or due to business need or due to need of attending suddenly fixed interview for getting a job like situation arises, one plans journey on urgent basis.

It is improper ,unjustified and a sin when a poor businessmen or professional  exploits the crisis of common men but it becomes a business strategy when Government of India through its Railway or AirIndia service wing exploits common men in crisis.

I think Government will ponder over above mentioned facts and stop immediately charging higher fare in the name of premium fare or dynamic fare. If possible they may increase number of coaches, number of trains and number of flights . Similarly GOI should fix airfare and train fare for private fliers and stop arbitrary and unethical loot of common men.

Stop exploitation and control price and then ensure good quality 

If a vendor sells a water bottle at Airport or Station or at tourist place at rates higher than normal rate or say MRP , we usually curse the vendor and talk of injustice , talk of exploitation by vendor and also abuse government in failing to keep price in control. Now a days , even MRP is printed differently at different bottles meant for selling at different places. 

Similarly GOI has no control on MRP fixed by any manufacturer, it may be 20% above cost price or 2000% above cost price. GOI say it is freedom to market and sometimes say it is market driven rates wilfully ignoring the instances of profiteering and exploitation resorted by greedy businessmen and professionals. There is almost no control on at least eatable items where price differs from Rs.100 to Rs.1000 for same product in the name of quality. 

In the same way , prices of various vegetables go up in the market in case of crisis or less supply of any vegetable at any point of time. We do not hesitate in abusing the vegetable seller or to local government or even to central government in failing to contain price rise. 

Prices sometimes go up in time of crisis or when demand is more. If some big businessman hoard it and create artificial crisis , it may be tagged as criminal act. But if  the crisis is due to paucity of supply of any product or due to abrupt rise in demand of the product and due to these reasons if prices go up , it is called as normal rise and as per economic law. 

GOI should fix price of all commodities and services of common use to contain price or at least regulate it . You may not win the war on price rise if you talk of liberalisation and privatisation without putting checkpoints and regulation. GOI should at the same time ensure quality of products sold in the market. 

Standard of Goods and services 

A bottle of water is sold in Rs.10 and Rs.100 also . Adulterated food materials like edible oils or ghee are sold in different rates creating adverse impact on health of common men. GOI should focus on quality and quantity of supply of each product. 

In many foreign countries , quality control is prime work of the government and we often hear the news that such and such product of Indian origin is banned in some country or the other. There is provision of heavy penalty when a manufacturer or a trader compromise with quality and impact the health of their citizen in foreign countries. We have heard may Indian pharma companies or FMCG producers are fined exorbitantly in foreign land only due to the fact that these companies did not maintain quality standards set by these countries.

But in India, there is practically no control on quality and no linkage of price with the quality. It all depends on the mercy , whims and fancies of the traders. They can loot consumers to any extent as per their sweet will. They loot even in medical field, in medicines, in pathological tests, in surgical operations and what not. They loot in more devastating manner in the field of real estate , education and in all field where product and services of common men need is produced. 

Quality is no where taken guaranteed in India but price may be charged to any extent. Government officials may be there in some cases, but they remain silent spectators for reason best known to them and to all. The principles of Privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation may sometimes become lame excuses for whose who play foul game with the system.

Expectations From GST is also Exaggerated 

Duty of a good government is to ensure quality in goods and services sold in the market. Government says that by application and introduction of GST ( Goods and services Act ) prices will be controlled and there will be no exploitation. I think they are mistaken and perhaps wondering in dreamland. 

Manufacturer may produce goods in 1000 number and may pay GST for 100 only. A trader may similarly may sell the goods and services without writing any invoice and without paying GST. 

How Government will control fake manufacturers and  formation of fake companies and fake firms to evade taxes still remains mystery. 

In Pre-GST era we have all experienced how goods move from one place to other without invoice . We know how over invoicing or under invoicing  is done in case of export and import . Many traders and professions though come in the range of VAT , Service Tax and Income Tax range ,but they are not tax payers . For this purpose they use several tools as of now and they will use the same tools in GST regime too unless and until the Government ensure honest compliance of rules and regulation and start punishing officials and politicians who promote violation of rules and laws.