Tags:
Journalism of Courage
A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the Opposition that India’s signing the nuclear deal with the US would not compel it to sign the CTBT, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Friday said that India’s future depended heavily on nuclear energy and urged everybody to “realise” this reality.
“We must all realise the importance of nuclear energy for the future development of India. All our efforts are today directed towards the welfare of our future generations,” said Sonia, who was addressing a farmers’ rally oganised by the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC).
Though she did not elaborate on the issue, she gave enough indication that her reference to nuclear energy as India’s future was related to global increase in the price of crude oil. “The price of crude oil in the international market was so high that there was no alternative left for us but to increase the prices of certain petroleum products,” she said.
“Despite the increase in prices of petrol and diesel, the government has borne most of the cost. In all Congress-ruled states, we have reduced taxes to keep the oil prices low. We have not even once increased the price of kerosene oil, it has remained the same,” said Sonia.
She admitted that people were facing hardships due to the oil price hike. “But Opposition parties should look at themselves before attacking us. The cost of one barrel of crude oil during NDA’s time was between $30 and $40. Today it is between $130 and $140,” she pointed out.
She said price of petroleum products in all neighbouring countries were much more. “Oil prices in all our neighbouring countries have been very high. But the UPA has tried to keep oil prices in India as low as possible,” the Congress president claimed.
Sonia also hailed Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi for the welfare measures undertaken for women, students, weavers and farmers, but not for once mentioned a word about the Congress party’s coalition partner Bodo People’s Front (BPF). Instead, she spoke of the minorities, and said that the UPA had several schemes aimed at the development of minorities.
“In Assam, 13 districts have a significant minority population, and the development schemes meant for them are doing well here,” she said. It was also the UPA that had, for the first time, created a separate ministry for welfare of minorities, Sonia added.
Talking about farmers, she said the Rs 70,000-crore loan waiver declared by the UPA was historic and revolutionary.
