New Delhi, Aug.20 (ANI): Janata Dal (United) president Sharad Yadav on Monday expressed shock over Union Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma's statement that farmers are benefiting from inflation.
Verma's statement comes just days after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stressed on the need to curb food inflation which continues to rise by over 10 percent annually.
Yadav said: "I was shocked after hearing his statement. He has been a political veteran and a member of the Samajwadi Party, the Lok Dal and now in the Congress Party. He said inflation will not affect the farmers. I am very very surprised," said Yadav.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader M. Venkaiah Naidu called Verma's remark 'anti-farmer', and added that inflation severely affects the farmers.
"The statement of Beni Prasad Verma and later supported by Salman Khurshid speaks of the mindset of the Congress ministers and their government that they are anti-farmer. Inflation, price rise affects the farmers the most and then they are the worst victims of inflation because the prices of seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, transport chargers, diesel, cost escalation. All these things will hurt the farmers very badly," Naidu said.
Inflation dropped to 6.87 percent in July from 7.25 percent in June as domestic gasoline and vegetable prices fell in July.
But global oil prices have been rising since then and drought in some parts of India is threatening fresh inflationary pressures.
Poor rains have slowed the speed of planting Kharif crops such as rice, cereals, pulses and oilseeds including soybean, but areas under sugar cane and cotton, primarily grown in irrigated regions, have been higher than the previous year.
More than half of the arable land in India, one of the world's biggest producers of cotton, rice, sugar and wheat, is rain-fed.
A successful monsoon means rural residents have more money to spend on everything from motorcycles to refrigerators. (ANI)
|
|
Comments:
