Modi panicky ahead of LS polls, says Congress after PM slams opposition on non-veg food
New Delhi, Apr 12: After Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the opposition for teasing the majority community by displaying videos of consuming meat during the month of Sawan, the Congress Friday said he is panicky ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
The Congress also accused the prime minister of trying to find a new diversion every day.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the prime minister's non-stop politicking is infantile and tiresome and claimed that the BJP is lagging behind in the polls as it was yet to put together its manifesto while the Congress has already declared one and is reaching out to the people.
Ramesh's reaction came after Prime Minister Modi, at a poll rally in Jammu and Kashmir, compared the mindset of the Congress and its allies with that of the Mughals, who he said used to derive pleasure from vandalising the temples.
He accused them of teasing the majority community by displaying videos of consuming meat during the month of Sawan to consolidate their vote banks.
"Unlike the prime minister, we have not tracked which leader ate what in which month. Here are the nutrition data points that we are tracking instead," Ramesh said in a post on X.
He said anaemia is caused by several factors, including iron deficiency, inadequate diet and other nutrient deficiencies. Between 2015-16 and 2019-21, anaemia in children under five increased by nearly 10 percentage points, he said, adding that among women aged 15 to 19, the prevalence of anaemia increased by 9.2 per cent.
In the PM's home state of Gujarat, a shocking eight out of ten children under five were found to be anaemic, he said.
"A Rs 4000-crore scheme to include breakfast for school-going children in the mid-day meal programme was vetoed by the finance ministry due to a lack of funds," he alleged.
Ramesh said the Global Health Indicator (GHI) report shows India's child wasting rate at 18.7 per cent, the highest among countries on its index. The child stunting rate is 35.5 per cent, the 15th highest in the world, he said, adding that malnutrition remains widespread under the Modi 'Sarkar', and has even gotten worse according to several data indicators.
"Every day the Prime Minister provides us with a new example of his sick mindset. The Prime Minister’s non-stop politicking is infantile and tiresome. A week before the first phase of polls, the BJP has barely put together a manifesto committee," he said.
Meanwhile, he continued, the Congress has published its manifesto, launched its door-to-door campaign to distribute their guarantee cards to every household and started its advertisement campaign.
"We are setting the agenda and taking our message to the masses. A panicky Prime Minister is trying to find a new diversion every day," Ramesh claimed.
Referring to some leaders consuming meat in the month of Sawan and making its video viral, Modi said, "In the month of Sawan, they went to the house of a person who was handed a punishment by a court and is on bail and cherished the taste of mutton. They made a video of it to tease the people of the country."
"During the month of Sawan, a person who was convicted, who is on bail, someone went to this kind of a criminal... During Sawan, they enjoyed eating mutton. Not just this, they made a video and worked to tease the people of India," he said, referring to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's visit to RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's house.
Modi said neither any law nor him prevents anyone from eating anything.
"Everyone is free to eat vegetarian or non-vegetarian food. But they had different intentions. The Mughals used to get satisfaction by vandalising temples, not by defeating kings. They used to derive pleasure out of it.
"Likewise, they tease the people of the country by releasing such videos in the month of Sawan and consolidate their vote banks," the prime minister alleged.
He said during Navratri, eating non-vegetarian food and highlighting it hurt the feelings of the people.
"These people will resort to abusing me and targeting me for saying this. But when it is beyond the point of tolerance, it is my duty in a democracy to tell the right things to the people. That is my job. I am fulfilling my duty," he said.
Modi accused these leaders of deliberately indulging in such acts "so that a big section of people gets annoyed".
"They have a Mughal mindset. They do not know that when the public gives a fitting reply, the princes of big dynasties get sidelined. Dynastic parties and corruption-ridden people should not be given opportunities," he said.
Unlike the Prime Minister, we have not tracked which leader ate what in which month. Here are the nutrition data points that we are tracking instead:
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 12, 2024
• Anaemia is caused by several factors, including iron deficiency, inadequate diet, and other nutrient deficiencies. Between… https://t.co/9zDWCzSHO3
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AI, IndiGo, SpiceJet seek ATF price relief; say airline industry on verge of 'stopping operations'
Mumbai (PTI): Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet have told the government that the country's airline industry is under extreme stress and on the verge of "stopping operations", as they sought revision in ATF pricing and financial support.
The West Asia turmoil has pushed up oil prices, and airspace restrictions have increased airlines' operating costs, especially on long-haul routes. Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) accounts for around 40 per cent of a carrier's operational expenses.
Against this backdrop, the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has written to the civil aviation ministry, seeking steps to extend the same fuel pricing mechanism uniformly across both domestic and international operations as was done in the past with the establishment of the crack band.
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With an unprecedented rise in jet fuel prices and exorbitant crack/differential between crude and ATF, the federation said the operation of airlines is being challenged in totality.
"... any ad hoc pricing (domestic vs international) and/or irrational increase in the price of ATF will result in unsurmountable losses for airlines and will lead to grounding of aircraft, resulting in cancellation of flights," the federation, which represents Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet, said.
"In order to survive, sustain and continue operation, we request your urgent intervention for immediate and meaningful financial support to tide over the current situation," it said in a letter on April 26.
Also, the airlines have sought temporary deferment of excise duty on ATF, which is at 11 per cent.
"With the abnormal increase in ATF prices from the pre-crisis period, adding rupee depreciation to the increased prices, the 11 per cent excise duty also increases manifold for the airlines and adds to the ATF price as a big impact on airlines," they said.
Last month, the government limited the hike in ATF price to Rs 15 per litre for domestic operations, but for international operations, the price rose by Rs 73 per litre.
The airlines said the situation has practically made international operations, along with domestic operations, completely unviable and resulted in significant losses for the aviation sector in April.
Seeking urgent intervention on the current ATF ad hoc pricing, FIA said the current situation is creating a severe imbalance in domestic and international operations and rendering airline networks unviable and unsustainable.
"The airline industry in India is under extreme stress and is on the verge of closing down or of stopping its operations."
The federation has pitched for a transparent pricing framework under the crack band mechanism (USD 12–22/BBL) that was implemented in October 2022, saying there was a fair and reasonable margin for Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).
According to FIA, the country's largest aviation hub Delhi has the second-highest value-added tax (VAT) of 25 per cent on jet fuel, while the highest rate is 29 per cent levied in Tamil Nadu.
"The other major aviation cities, viz. Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Kolkata range between 16 per cent and 20 per cent. These 6 cities cover more than 50 per cent of airlines' operations within India," the federation said.
