The Left Democratic Alliance (LDA) is all set to observe a half-day hartal across the country on Thursday protesting the hike in the prices of fuel, urea fertilizer and daily essentials.

The LDA, a coalition of eight left-leaning political parties, will enforce the hartal from 6am to 12noon also to push for its demand for reducing the prices of fuel, urea fertiliser, essential food and other commodities and transport fare.

At a press conference on Wednesday at Mukti Bhaban in the capital, LDA Coordinator and CPB General Secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince called upon the country’s people to observe the hartal with their spontaneous presence on the streets also to mount pressure on the government to stop the process of increasing the prices of electricity and gas.

Read:BNP supports left alliance’s hartal on Aug 25

Stating that people are going through immense suffering due to the rise in the prices of fuel and commodities, he warned that LDA will announce greater programmes in the future if the government does not realise their demands after the general strike.

Prince said hospitals, hotels, medicine shops and vehicles engaged in providing emergency services will remain out of the purview of the hartal.

Earlier on Aug 16, LDA called the nationwide half-day hartal for August 25.

In an abrupt move, the government increased the prices of diesel, octane and petrol by 42.5 per cent, 51.7 per cent and 51 per cent respectively on August 5.

Currently, diesel is being sold at Tk 114 per litre, octane at Tk 135 per litre and petrol at Tk 130 per litre, pushing up the prices of all essential items.

On August 17, BNP extended its support to the LDA’s hartal. Party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir made the announcement at a press conference at the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office.