Rafale deal: Modi struck deal on his own, alleges Congress
New Delhi, Aug 28 : Targeting the government on the Rafale deal, the Congress on Tuesday said even the then Foreign Secretary had no idea about it before it was announced by the Prime Minister.
Congress spokesperson Jaipal Reddy told the media that the Rafale deal was made directly by Prime Minister Modi with French President (Francois Hollande).
"Foreign Secretary (S. Jaishankar) had no idea about it until two days before the deal (April 8, 2015) was announced by PM Modi. Just two days before the contract was announced by Modi, the Foreign Secretary had announced that HAL is part of the contract with Dassault Aviation," he added.
Reddy asked why were (the then) Defence Minister (Manohar Parrikar) and Foreign Secretary not taken into confidence.
"Former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said he will back the deal signed by the Prime Minister. Usually PM backs the Defence Minister. This means that even he (Parrikar) didn't know about the deal," said Reddy.
The former Union Minister alleged that the Rafale deal was a "brazen and a gargantuan contract".
"Brazen because, none of the procedures were followed...gargantuan because, the difference between the UPA deal and the current deal is Rs 41,000 crore. Reliance company is disclosing the figures but the government doesn't. How does Reliance, which has zero experience, is undertaking this offset contract?" Reddy said.
He further said Modi behaved like a medieval monarch, Louis XIV (King of France), who said "I am the State". "Modi entered into the contract on his own".
"Like Louis XIV, he also tried to silence the opposition voice. Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) was not followed, Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and the Price Negotiation Committee were not consulted. We do not know if the Air Force was consulted," said Reddy.
He also said: "Now their defence is -- prices have gone up because 'special equipment' have been added. However, after Modi reached an agreement with the French President, it was stated that configuration would be the same. In other words, the parameters would be the same."
Reddy further said Modi who believed in "Make in India", now believes in "Make Brokers in India".
"With this contract, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd's growth will be stunted. This is a great disservice to the nation. Whenever India made foreign purchase, we insisted upon transfer of technology," said Reddy.
"We needed 126 aircraft, that was the minimal requirement. Why are they now satisfied with just 36? What will happen to the rest?" he said.
He also stated that on July 14, 2015, rival company Eurofighter wrote to the government saying it would supply the aircraft for less than 20 per cent of the price of Dassault.
"Why did the NDA government not seize the offer? We don't question the quality, it's about the price, the deal and transparency," he said.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
