Narendra Modi criticises Centre on Food Security Bill

Post elevation, chief minister Narendra Modi’s tweetings have also assumed a national hue, with most of his tweets, especially those aimed at the Union government now going bilingual, — i.e., being in Hindi as well as English. On Thursday Modi criticised Congress-led UPA government over the proposed National Food Security Bill on the micro-blogging site, wherein he also cited Gujarat’s example.

While the Union government is pushing implementation of the ambitious National Food Security Bill, Modi criticised the UPA government stating that it was rubbing salt on the wounds of people already grappling with price hike. Modi tweeted: “Dilli mai baithi Congress ki sarkar mehngai se trahi-trahi kar rahi garib janta ke ghao par namak chirakne ki kam kar rahe hai.” He went to add that “After 10 years, the government at Delhi has thought about the poor, we doubt their intentions.”

Terming the bill a vote bank gimmick of Congress when elections are round the corner, Modi had said on Wednesday that they (Congress) only cares for votes and did not abide by the apex court’s directives on grain distribution. Drawing parallels with the state of public distribution system (PDS) in Gujarat, Modi wrote on the micro blogging site: “For the last 10 years in Gujarat, poor are getting wheat at Rs2 per kg and rice at Rs3 per kg through public distribution system...Is this not food security.”

Gujarat government officials associated with the administration of PDS said, “Gujarat is definitely doing good in PDS. In fact, now with the introduction of bar-coded ration card and food grain delivery system through electronically monitored methods, many leakages in the system have been plugged.” 

Centre is making all out efforts to draw an all party consensus over the bill, which proposes giving legal rights to nearly 67% of the population over a uniform quantity of 5kg food grains at a fixed price of Rs1-3 per kg through ration shops. (With agencies)