LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Opposition political parties and trade unions enforced a shutdown in many cities this week. There have been anti-government marches held in New Delhi and at the commercial hub of Mumbai.

Most shops were closed in New Delhi and traffic was light. Many workers decided to stay home because of the lack of public transport.

The Shiv Sena party in Mumbai instructed residents that they "should not venture out of their houses." There were also reports of buses being stoned and offices attacked.

In Patna City, protestors burned effigies of Manmohan Singh, Indian prime minister. Protesters in Kolkata blocked roads and shouted anti-government slogans.

The strike came on the same day as shock economic growth figures for the January-March quarter showed the slowest quarterly expansion in nine years, of 5.3 per cent.

India's listless economy, high inflation and a series of corruption scandals have weakened the coalition government headed by the 79-year-old Singh and his Congress party.
Indian state-run oil firms announced last week announced the sharpest jump in petrol prices in nearly a decade to offset growing losses caused by subsidized rates.

The price increase of 11 U.S. cents per liter will result in an Rs7.5-rupee rise for consumers in cities such as Delhi.

The Indian government faces pressure from the street to help the poor with the rising cost of living in India. Analysts say subsidies must be contained due to a gaping public deficit.

In 2010, the government deregulated petrol prices in a reform aimed at reducing the massive subsidies it pays to state-run fuel refiners which rely on imported energy.

A series of smaller petrol price increases last year caused a major headache for the government with the second-largest party in the ruling coalition threatening to pull out.

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