PRICE RISE

People’s Agony in UPA II Regime

Students’ Federation of India have always strongly condemned the food related policies of the UPA II Government, and holds them responsible for the persistent rise in the prices of food and other essential commodities.

The comparative prices of various essential commodities are given in the following table:

Certain policies of the UPA Government which is directly responsible for the persistent price rise are discussed below:

o   The targeted PDS Scheme has divided the people into APL, BPL and the poorest who qualify for the Antyodaya scheme. Thus even the poor people is being divided, and as a result a section of them is being denied the subsidies which they need to thrive.

o   On the issue of Food Security, a family is considered eligible only if it eats “less than one square meal a day”. Shockingly, a family where both the male and female may work is non-poor, as is a family where a child is sent to a school!

o   Shamefully, the UPA Government has just expanded the Antyodaya Scheme beneficiaries by a meagre 10 lakh per annum.

o   Central Government have made no help at all to help build the infrastructure such as godowns, procurement centres for the states.

o   Weakening of the FCI, privatization of godowns have made an adverse impact on the PDS.

o   Using the pretext of low stocks, the UPA Govt. have repeatedly decreased the allocations for the APL. When the price of Wheat soared up in global market following speculative trade, instead of continuing wheat procurement to stabilize its price, the Govt. withdrew itself from Wheat procurement, thus initializing a laissez-faire economy for wheat, and increasing the people’s distress.

o   The UPA Government had cut domestic procurement to allow foreign big agribusinesses to corner stocks at prices slightly higher than the MSP. In 2006 and 2007, UPA Govt. imported 5.5 million tonnes of poor quality wheat at higher price, while it was not prepared to buy it from our farmers, that too at lower price. It paid almost Rs.16000 per tonne, while it had set the MSP only Rs.8500 per tonne.

o   During the UPA regime, the average share for food security allocation on all Programmes has stayed below 1% of GDP (current price).

o   The Saxena Committee appointed by the Govt. itself has pointed out that 51% of the poor have been denied the BPL ration card, and hence are also deprived of the food grains.

o   Though China has higher GDP growth, yet is inflation rate is way below that of India.

o   48 lakh tonnes of sugar are exported at Rs.12 per kg, and then re-imported at Rs.22 to 32 per kg. – At whose interest?

o   In December 2009, agriculture growth was negative (-0.2%). Yet, the UPA Govt. had put a meagre Rs.900 crore subsidy (0.075% of total budget) on agricultural development.

o   While farmers are being paid only Rs.9.80 per kg of rice and Rs.10.80 of wheat, people are being paid Rs.23 and Rs.17 respectively (as of 2010).

o   In the name of saving PSU oil companies from bankruptcy, the deregulation of oil prices have hurt the common people most.