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Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today asked whether farmers are not contributing to ‘Make in India’ by providing food to the entire country.
“Prime Minister (Modi) speaks of ‘Make in India’ but no one does ‘Make in India’ more than a farmer of Punjab. He has established this country. Is the work done by poor not ‘Make in India’? Is it something else? Rahul asked in an interaction with reporters while referring to Modi’s pet theme of wooing foreign investors to manufacture in India.
Vowing to raise voice for farmers from very platform, Rahul said government should take into account their serious concerns and not just extend monetary assistance.
His remarks came a day after the Parkash Singh Badal government in Punjab announced disbursement of ₹4,000 crore to farmers within 24 hours as payment for their harvest.
The Congress Vice President, who met farmers hit by unseasonal rains in Punjab and stayed here overnight after travelling by train to the NDA-ruled state, also took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said, “I will raise the voice and pain suffered by farmers and atrocities on them from every platform.”
BJP and its ally in Punjab Shiromani Akali Dal have termed his visit as a “political drama” over the land bill.
Rahul said farmers should be helped as they are the backbone of the country.
“No one works harder for the country than the farmers.
Punjab farmers provide food to the entire country. I understand the pain of farmers and listened to their voice,” he said.
Back from his nearly two-month sabbatical, Rahul has struck an aggressive note taking on the government over the land bill with his Kisan rally in Delhi and later his attacks against the NDA dispensation in the Lok Sabha on the issue.
He will now travel to Maharashtra and undertake a 15-km, day-long padyatra in Amravati division of Vidarbha region in Maharashtra on April 30 to highlight the farmers’ plight.
Maharashtra is one of the states that experienced severe agrarian crisis and the Amravati division in Vidarbha region has witnessed many farmer suicides this year.
Yesterday, Rahul visited the ‘mandis’ of Sirhind, Gobindgarh and Khanna, the latter housing the country’s largest grain market.
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