The Hindu : National : Manmohan to address meeting on prices

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Manmohan to address meeting on prices

Gargi Parsai

NEW DELHI: With the price situation serious and the monsoon situation worrisome, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address a meeting of State Chief Secretaries on Saturday.

Union Agriculture and Food Minister Sharad Pawar, who faced a hostile opposition in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday while replying to a discussion on the price rise, will also speak to the bureaucrats on agriculture and food security.

According to sources, Dr. Singh is expected to emphasise to senior officials of States and Union Territories the need to make the most of the monsoon situation by enforcing implementation of contingency plans for better production, and ensuring a better supply of fertilizers, water, and power to farmers.

Focus on PDS, NREGA

There will be particular focus on protecting the vulnerable sections of society by ensuring a smooth running of the Public Distribution System and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act programme.

Over 105 officials representing the agriculture, food, and civil supplies departments, will attend the high-profile meeting convened by Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekar.

More than 15 secretaries from various union ministries, including agriculture, food, consumer affairs, power, fertilizers, water, food processing, and IMD will participate.

Each State will be given the opportunity to detail its cropping pattern and water stress situation in view of the 25 per cent deficient rainfall this monsoon. States would also provide an assessment of their requirement of fertilizers, power and water.

Sowing affected

Bihar, Punjab, Haryana, western and eastern Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, parts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Assam, and Jharkhand are facing a deficient rainfall situation, as a result of which the sowing of paddy, sugarcane, and edible oilseeds is lagging.

The Government is also on the back foot with regard to the steep increase in the prices of pulses, sugar, milk, some edible oils, and vegetables in the last few weeks, and the meeting would attempt to come up with an action plan to tackle the situation.

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