The Mumbai-based British-Dutch major Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) is getting slammed on social media for taking advantage of the rising demand for soaps and sanitisers due to coronavirus to increase the prices of its hygiene products by 5-6 percent.
HUL confirmed on 31 January that it was mulling increasing the prices of soaps by up to 6 percent to offset the rising cost of palm oil, a key raw material in manufacturing soaps.
According to trade sources, HUL hiked the price of disinfectant Lifebuoy soaps by 12 percent and Lux soaps by 5.6 percent.
The move has led to social media users calling for a boycott of HUL.
Other slammed it for “trade malpractice” and “opportunisms” for using the crisis situation for gains.
The coronavirus has spread rapidly to more than 150 countries. The World Health Organisation has recommended that everyone wash their hands often with disinfectant soap to slow the spread of the virus.
Globally, coronavirus cases have exceeded 200,000, claiming the lives of over 8,000 people. India has a total of 130 confirmed cases with three deaths.