NEW DELHI, 5 Nov: The Congress on Sunday said that the government’s decision to extend the free ration scheme for another five years is an indication of the continuing high level of economic distress and growing inequalities in the country.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of shifting his position on the issue.
“His latest announcement is an indication of the continuing high level of economic distress and growing inequalities. For the vast majority of Indians, incomes have not grown in line with the sky-high prices of essential commodities,” Ramesh said in a post on X.
He said that the prime minister has announced that the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) would be extended for another five years.
“As chief minister of Gujarat, he had consistently opposed the National Food Security Act (NFSA) passed by Parliament in September 2013,” the Congress leader claimed.
Ramesh said that “the PMGKY is nothing but the NFSA that already covered 80 crore Indians.”
“This of course is not the only example of a U-turn done by him. On MGNREGA too, which proved to be a life-saver during the pandemic, he was forced to shift his position,” he alleged.
At a rally in Durg on Saturday, Modi had said that the government will extend for five years the free ration scheme covering 80 crore poor people. (PTI)
