Inflation Takes Its Toll On Humans In Lanka: Two Men In Their 70s Collapse And Die While Queuing Up For Fuel

Two men in their seventies collapsed and died while waiting for petrol and kerosene in two different parts of Sri Lanka amidst rising inflation in the island country.

“One was a 70-year-old three-wheeler driver who was a diabetic and heart patient while the second was a 72-year-old, both had been waiting in line for about four hours for fuel oil,” police spokesperson Nalin Thalduwa was quoted in a report by Reuters.

Sri Lankans have reportedly been queuing up at pumps for several hours for quite a few weeks now. The nation has been dealing with several power-cuts as well.

Sri Lanka even suspended operations at its only fuel refinery on Sunday as their crude oil stocks have run out.

In fact, the consumption of kerosene oil has increased in the country as low-income families have been shifting away from cooking oil due to price hikes.

Sri Lanka’s inflation and food inflation levels touched the 15.1 per cent and 25.7 per cent mark respectively on February 2022.

Reuters has even reported that the cost of a cup of milk tea has reached to Rs 100 in some restaurants in the country as milk powder prices have increased to Rs 250 for a 400 gm pack as of Saturday.