ISLAMABAD - People from all walks of life while condemning the increase in CNG prices have demanded of the government to take strict action  against the OGRA officials due to whose mistake regarding increase in CNG rates, people had to face loss of millions of rupees. A number of CNG dealers and CNG stations after hearing increase in gas prices on June 30 Monday, did not even bother to wait for the issuance of formal notification of the increase in CNG price to the tune of Rs 13 per kg and earned millions of rupees by overcharging people from Monday night to late Tuesday night. The announcement made by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources that it there was a mistake in the calculations that instead of Rs 4.30 per kg the increase in CNG prices Rs 13 per kg was announced. Reacting on the explanation, Ayub, a shopkeeper said that how it could be possible that instead of Rs.4.30 the ministry announced Rs 13 per kg increase. He said that Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority after long deliberations suggests increase in the prices and then sends the summary to Prime Minister for approval. How the ministry could justify the losses that stand to the tune of billions of rupees inflicted to masses. What about the CNG owners who pocketed billions of rupees within 36 hours, he questioned. Khwaja Mateeullah said that he was shocked to hear that the prices of CNG had  been increased to Rs.13 per kg as it never happened in the entire history of the country. He was of the view that  it was a  well-conceived conspiracy to benefit the CNG owners. Where were the OGRA or the Monopoly Control Authority's officials when the people were being looted by  the CNG stations under the legal cover provided to them by increasing the CNG prices to such high-level, he asked. The cartels formed by some CNG dealers and by some of CNG stations owners in their lust of profit should be checked and the gas mafia should not be allowed to plunder the consumers with the connivance of some black sheep in OGRA. An official who just got retired from OGRA alleged that since the Authority was made autonomous body by the then PML-Q government, it seems that the Authority is benefiting the petrol pumps  and CNG stations owners by increasing the POL , gas and CNG prices as it has did nothing to provide relief to common man instead depriving people of their hard earned money. Most of the officials hired by the OGRA are belong to Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources and their misdeeds are well-known to people. After retirement  from the ministry concerned their services were hired by the OGRA on  hefty packages. They are enjoying perks and privileges more than  those employed in any governmental, semi-governmental or autonomous institutions. What to say about the salaries they are drawing, he maintained. He further disclosed that during the PML-Q regime, MNA Dr Firdaus Aashiq Awan who was parliamentary secretary for Ministry of Petroleum and natural Resources tried her level best to straighten  the things and put an end to the illegal activities of  the Authority. She even raised her voice on the flour of the both upper and lower house but her attempts proved nothing but a ''cry in wilderness''. He said there were hundreds of thousands of complaints lying  with the Authority and different institutions including NAB. But so far nothing has been done to take to the task  any person or persons responsible for making things from bad to worst. Though the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources did come up with the notification on Tuesday night, rather it sought  to save their skin from the fallout of blunder they made in notifying the increase in CNG prices as Rs.13 per kg instead of Rs.4.30. The damage has been done. CNG owners earned billions of rupees within 36 hours under the legal cover provided by the OGRA. The loadshedding, flour crisis, water shortage seems never ending. It already has made the lives of the people nothing less than a ''living hell''.  The ministry concerned as it thinks, provided relief by giving subsidy on   200 cubic meters to domestic consumers. But 200 cubic meters are far less than the domestic users consume in a month. 31 percent rise in natural gas prices, would definitely hurt the common man. Increase in prices of petroleum products, natural gas,CNG, electricity, flour, ghee and other essential items, loadshedding and other such issues have badly affected the people. The government must intervene to control prices of indigenously produced products like LPG and Sui Gas to  ease life of the consumers especially the lower class. It's high time for the government to prove its  sincerity in  resolving the problems of common man. People have the  right to demand across the board accountability. The person or persons responsible for feeding wrong data to the Minister Incharge who announced  Rs 13 per kg instead of Rs.4.30 per kg should be must be taken to task as this was not a mistake or slip of tongue  as being claimed by the officials  concerned. It seems this was done deliberately to benefit blue-eyed. Who owns dealership, petrol pumps or CNG stations is an open  secret. They are well-connected and well-off people and the affiliation of some black sheep in OGRA with them is also known to everybody. This is eloquently borne out from the fact that the CNG and Petrol pump owners come to know about the impending increase in the prices much before they are announced. Initiating accountability from OGRA will be good enough to put the things on right track and would definitely expose the gas mafia who under the garb of OGRA Ordinance 2006 are sucking the blood of people.