Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress said on Saturday that Uttar Pradesh’s double-engine government is running “dangerously low” on gasoline and that PM must address crucial state concerns before the engine sputters to a stop on June 4. Ahead of the prime minister’s event in Saharanpur, Congress national secretary Jairam Ramesh asked the PM three questions, one of which concerned Saharanpur’s wood-carving business.
“Today, PM Modi is visiting Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, where the double-engine sarkar is running critically short on gasoline. Before the engine sputters to a halt on June 4th, we hope the PM can answer these three concerns about why the equipment is failing,” Ramesh said on X. Ramesh noted that Saharanpur is worldwide renowned for its wood-carving business, which is commonly known as the Wooden City. He added that the sector is more than 200 years old and is critical to the city’s economic health, employing more than 7 lakh people.
Unfortunately, the Modi government’s recurrent errors have had a significant impact on the wood-carving business. First, demonetisation, then GST, and ultimately, unanticipated pandemic lockdowns have ravaged the sector, which has been battling to recover ever since, he claimed. At its peak, it exported more than 1,500 crores of items, but this figure has since dropped by over 90%, he stated.
“The ‘double-engine’ sarkar was convicted triple-guilty in Saharanpur. What does Prime Minister Modi have to say to the lakhs of craftsmen who are suffering as a result of his errors? What have the BJP administrations at the state and federal levels done to help this age-old industry?” he asked.
Noting that Uttar Pradesh is the country’s largest sugarcane producer, Ramesh stated that farmers in Western Uttar Pradesh have been requesting a rise in the fixed price (SAP) of sugarcane due to rising fertiliser and pesticide expenses. However, the BJP administration has boosted the price to merely Rs.360 per quintal, which farmers in Uttar Pradesh consider to be terribly insufficient. This recent price increase trails well behind inflation and is substantially lower than Punjab’s Rs.386/quintal and Haryana’s Rs.391/quintal, he added.
Sudhir Panwar, a former member of the UP Planning Commission, stated, “In UP, the SAP, which was previously determined by input cost, is now dictated by the election schedule.” Can the Prime Minister explain why the BJP administration has been so hesitant to appropriately recompense farmers for their work? Ramesh stated. Despite repeated pledges to act, the UP administration has failed to address the rising stray cattle problem, he stated.
He claimed that due to a lack of sufficient animal shelters, cattle ranchers had just released their animals rather than caring for them.
These cattle have become a farmer’s nightmare, constantly damaging crops and, due to their preference for higher-value crops, even impeding agricultural diversification attempts. Farmers must to remain vigilant at all times, and some have died as a result of bull assaults, he added. Instead of diverting public conversation, the Prime Minister should address the issues that affect the local people: what is his vision for resolving this problem? Ramesh stated and urged the prime minister to break his silence on these problems. The seven-phase Lok Sabha elections will commence on April 19, and the results will be announced on June 4.
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