Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Centre urged to strengthen PDS

Putting their heads together: The Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers in session at Kovalam on Monday. West Bengal Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta, who is the chairman of the committee, and Kerala Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac are seen at the head of the table.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Finance Minister of West Bengal Asim Dasgupta demanded here on Monday that the Centre should strengthen the public distribution system (PDS) to stem the price rise.

The Minister told journalists that the governments of West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura had demanded that at the National Development Council meetings and other meetings with the Planning Commission and the Union Ministers. Though the Centre had started some steps to check the price rise now, one year had been lost. “The loss of one year is a costly loss. Once food prices go up, that jacks up prices of all commodities.”

Dr. Dasgupta wondered why the Centre had not provided adequate support price for wheat when it was importing wheat at the double the current support price. “Why did the Centre allow the public distribution system to collapse. Why did the Centre allow the growth rate in agriculture to fall? Why did it allow advance purchase of commodities in the market by private agencies?”

“Why is it indiscriminatingly allowing export of iron ore? If inflation is the result of increase in petroleum prices, why is the government taking steps to exploit natural gas available in different parts of the country?”

He also wondered why it took the Centre this long to strengthen the Essential Commodities Act. The provisions of the Act had been diluted by the NDA government.

He said the remarks of U.S. President George W. Bush on Indian food consumption were totally unacceptable.

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