Bijapur 25 Oct: At the time when the Opposition parties are blaming the Modi government for the price rise in the country, BJP National General Secretary, CT Ravi has said that if someone has to be blamed for the price rise then it should be China which spread COVID pandemic across the world.
“Blame China and COVID for the price rise, not Modi government,” he said at the press conference in Sindgi town on Monday.
Ravi, who had come to campaign for the party candidate, Ramesh Bhusnur, claimed that the prices were under control in the country before the nation was hit by the COVID pandemic.
It is not just India, but the entire world is suffering because of the COVID pandemic and prices have risen across the globe, he said and hoped that the situation will not remain the same for long.
He claimed that in order to give relief to the farmers from rising prices of fuel, the Modi government increased the subsidy to Rs. 1700 on fertilizers on each bag.
Accusing the Congress of spreading canards, Ravi said that the party which is master in lying has nothing else to say but to keep blaming the BJP.
“It is the same Congress which had called COVID vaccine fake, but the very Congress leaders stood in the queue to take the vaccine”, he said.
Ravi said that Congress is making allegations against the BJP as the party is frustrated after losing a series of elections in the country.
Describing Congress as the party that stood for the terrorists, he said that there was a time when the party was protecting the terrorists by feeding them Biryani.
“The Congress leaders were shedding tears for the death of any terrorist. But the Modi government is tough against terrorists. Today, we will kill four terrorists if they kill our one soldier”, Ravi said.
Refuting the allegations that corporate giants such as Ambani and Adani have become richer only during the Modi government, Ravi said that these people have been wealthy for decades.
“Many pharmaceutical companies have also become rich during COVID pandemic. Moreover, the Modi government is not working for such rich people. Tell me, does a scheme such as Ayushman Bharat is meant for common people or Ambani”, he asked.
MLC, Arun Shahapur, Former MLA, Appu Pattanshetty, and party leaders were present at the press conference.
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Washington/New Delhi (PTI): The US has announced 27 percent reciprocal tariffs on India saying New Delhi imposes high import duties on American goods, as the Donald Trump administration aims to reduce the country's trade deficit and boost manufacturing.
The move is expected to impact India's exports to the US. However, experts say that India is better-placed than its competitors who also face increased levies.
President Trump, in a historic measure to counter higher duties on American products imposed globally, announced reciprocal tariffs on about 60 countries.
"This is Liberation Day, a long-awaited moment. April 2, 2025 will forever be remembered as the day American industry was reborn, the day America's destiny was reclaimed, and the day that we began to make America wealthy again. We are going to make it wealthy, good, and wealthy," Trump said in his remarks from the Rose Garden at the White House on Wednesday.
He said that the United States charges other countries only a 2.4 percent tariff on motorcycles, but Thailand and others are charging much higher rates, like 60 percent, India 70 percent, Vietnam 75 percent, and others charge even higher rates.
As he announced the tariffs, he held up a chart that showed the tariffs that countries such as India, China, the UK, and the European Union charge, along with the reciprocal tariffs that these countries will now have to pay.
The chart indicated that India charged 52 percent tariffs, including currency manipulation and trade barriers, and America would now charge India a discounted reciprocal tariff of 26 percent. But according to the White House documents, there will be a 27 percent duty on India.
"India, very, very tough. Very, very tough. The prime minister just left. He's a great friend of mine, but I said, you're a friend of mine, but you're not treating us right. They charge us 52 percent. You have to understand, we charge them almost nothing for years and years and decades, and it was only seven years ago, when I came in, that we started with China," Trump said.
Describing the tariffs as a "mixed bag and not a set back", an official in India said the commerce ministry is analysing the impact of 27 percent reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US on India.
According to the official, the universal 10 percent tariffs will come into effect on all imports into the US from April 5 and from April 10, 27 per cent duty will come into play.
"The ministry is analysing the impact of the announced tariffs," the official said, adding there is a provision that if a country would address the concerns of the US, the Trump administration can consider reducing the duties against that nation.
India is already negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with the US. The two countries are aiming to finalise the first phase of the pact by fall (September-October) of this year.
"It is a mixed bag and not a setback for India," the official said.
Exporters' body FIEO stated that the duties on India will undoubtedly affect domestic players but early conclusion of the trade agreement would provide relief from these tariffs.
"We have to assess the impact, but looking at the reciprocal tariffs imposed on other countries, we are in a lower band. We are much better placed compared to our key competitors such as Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, etc. We will definitely be affected by the tariffs, but we are much better placed than many others," Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai told PTI.
From 2021-22 to 2023-24, the US was India's largest trading partner. The US accounts for about 18 per cent of India's total goods exports, 6.22 per cent in imports, and 10.73 per cent in bilateral trade.
With America, India had a trade surplus (the difference between imports and exports) of USD 35.32 billion in goods in 2023-24. This was USD 27.7 billion in 2022-23, USD 32.85 billion in 2021-22, USD 22.73 billion in 2020-21, and USD 17.26 billion in 2019-20.
In 2024, India's main exports to the US included drug formulations and biologicals (USD 8.1 billion), telecom instruments (USD 6.5 billion), precious and semi-precious stones (USD 5.3 billion), petroleum products (USD 4.1 billion), gold and other precious metal jewellery (USD 3.2 billion), ready-made garments of cotton, including accessories (USD 2.8 billion), and products of iron and steel (USD 2.7 billion).
Imports included crude oil (USD 4.5 billion), petroleum products (USD 3.6 billion), coal, coke (USD 3.4 billion), cut and polished diamonds (USD 2.6 billion), electric machinery (USD 1.4 billion), aircraft, spacecraft and parts (USD 1.3 billion), and gold (USD 1.3 billion).