Tag: Food inflation

Potato Politics and Commercial Airport in Rae Barielly !


Dear Rahul,

Last week you made a statement that , ‘ 50 grams of potato chip are sold for Rs. 10 , and that this is made from just half potato’ ! Correct ! But again , Rahul don’t forget that the foreign companies no lesser than Wal-Mart ( likes of Pepsico ) are selling these expensive potato chips made from half a potato . So, does it not make more sense to check the growth of MNC retail chains / companies in India, who are buying cheap potato but ‘profiteering’ by selling chips at Rs. 10 per packet and the poor farmer is losing his produce at a throw away price  ?

Also, I wish to draw your attention towards the fact that currently the farmers are paid Rs. 1 per KG. I cannot understand why will ‘Profit & balance sheet obsessed’ Retail chains pay more to these poor farmers !

Simply stating that the middlemen would be removed and so farmers will get more, is a fallacious statement and conveys a lack of your ignorance about the realities. I think your party and Maya ji are fighting in the ‘aerial warfare’ with no touch of realities on the ground

I can clearly see the trick in getting the farmer leader Ajit Singh into Congress. Clearly , he will help you pitch farmers in favor of FDI and also convert a few of them as voters . But these tactics might not work in the long run , hopefully there are millions like myself who know the reality of these old tricks of congress for vote bank politics  !

I read another news that Rae Bareilly will get a commercial airport

Let me enlighten you about the Awadh region where your dad , mom & yourself have fought & won elections for decades

The Awadh region once ruled by nawabs and taluqdars and known as granary of India because of its fertile Gangetic plain. The area has given prime ministers to the country – Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. But most districts are still backward.

Population | 3.654 Cr

Per Capita Income | Rs 13,150.81

Faizabad division | Faizabad, Ambedkar Nagar, Sultanpur, Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Nagar, Barabanki

Devipatan division | Gonda, Balrampur, Shravasti, Bahraich

Kanpur division | Kanpur, Ramabai Nagar, Auraiya, Farrukkhabad, Kannauj, Etawah

Lucknow division | Lakhimpur, Lucknow, Sitapur, Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli

Now here is an interesting fact : Purulia is better off than Rae Bareli and Amethi and this was quoted in this article of Business Standard & Mid-Day. http://www.mid-day.com/poll2009/2009/apr/270409-Purulia-is-better-than-Amethi-Left-tells-Rahul.htm 

Let me walk you through a planning commission report on the per capita domestic product , and the NDP per capita in your family’s constituency.

Net domestic product (total and per capita) 2006-7 as per planning commission, Government of India

 

  At Current Prices At Constant Prices 1999-2000
  Domestic Product (Total) Rs. in CR. Per Capita Domestic Product (Rs.) Domestic Product (Total) (Rs. in Cr.) Per Capita

Domestic Product (Rs.)
Rae Barielly 3288 10361 2489 7844
Sultanpur 3955 11168 3077 8687
         

Source:http://planning.up.nic.in/Annual%20Plan%202010-11%20for%20website/Volume%20-%20I%20(%20Part-II)/Chapter-6.prn.pdf

 So clearly, getting an airport in Rae Barielly is a stupidity of the highest order, and that too, when it is clear that the region is back ward and people can barely survive a year without good rains leave alone travelling by air ! Please read the per capita income and check out if the poor people of that district can even afford the air port taxes leave along the airfare !

 I have visited Amethi and met up with dozens of self-help groups that you have formed in Amethi, and let me tell you that, you are just ‘Using’ the emotions of these poor people for becoming a member of Lok Sabha from Amethi

 While I was travelling to Amethi, none else than your own people (close associates) have informed me that the worst road in India is between Rae Bareilly and Sultanpur. Do I write more!

 Learn from Mr. Vajpayee , who started the Golden Quadrilateral project for the Aam Aaadmi and your government is more interested in airports, so that you can fly directly to Amethi rather than taking the 2 hour road drive to Amethi via Lucknow . You are wasting the hard earned money of common men like myself , who earn by hard work and pay 1/3rd of our income as taxes to the government , and people like you go and throw it for things like building an airport at Rae Barielly !

By the way i could not understand that in the same week you talked about potato being sold at Rs.1 per KG and the other side an Airport in Rae Barielly ?

 Gandhi Dynasty has taken India back ward by at least 30 years , and we need to stop it soon.

 I also don’t understand what is your intent for the so-called ‘Food Security Bill’ and ‘Job Guarantee Bill’. You will give fixed income to people so that they do not have to work and then you guarantee them food ? So it means that people will not have to work and earn the food , and will get it free ? Where will the Rs. 5 lac crore come from for these schemes ?  Will these things take India forward or your party men who will get the ration shops to distribute ( read divert ) grains and sell them to the open market, and finally , the poor Aam Aadmi will be left stranded on the road !

 Wake up Rahul ! Time will never forgive your people, and the elections will decide your fate not this ‘aerial warfare’  .

Rajendra Pratap Gupta 

Healthcare I Retail I Rural Economy I Public Policy

www.commonmansblog.com

New Year might have plenty of bad news for the Economy


The New year ( 2012 ) will not be a good year for India . The industrial production is falling , interest rates have gone up , corruption is on the rise , inflation is going up, rupee is going down compared to the dollar, and the investment outlook for India is negative due to wrong policies pursued by the congress government over the past several years .

It is time to change and bring a fresh look at the fundamentals of the economic policy & social disbursements 

I was speaking with one of my friend from abroad , and he was of the view that USA / Europe  is headed for the worst and India is no better off ! Hope it is not true !

Hoping that things will change miraculously !

Rajendra Pratap Gupta 

 

 

 

FDI in retail – This is a harsh reality – Is FDI really a boon for India at this time ?


Government’s arguments for FDI in retail are a proof of the fact, that this government does not understand India, and looks at Indians from USA’s businessmen’s perspective. Congress government has become the biggest lobbyist for pursuing the business interest of nuclear & retail corporations from USA & Europe at the cost of India’s middle class

Today’s Economic Times (26th November 2011) headline ‘ Govt Sells Multi-Brand FDI with best bargains’ gives a list of reasons why the government is supporting, (rather pushing FDI ) in retail. Let me put the Common Man’s view and take on each of these arguments

1.     It will create 10 million jobs in the next 3 years

A) According to the CII report in 2007, ‘India will need 10 to 12 million skilled workers every year for the next five years to meet the growing demand from the support services and there is a need for strong intervention to ensure the availability of the workforce’. So is the government trying to say that it is only the retail chains that will create 10 million jobs in the next three years?

B) Let us examine how many jobs Wal-Mart created in America & how many jobs did Wal-Mart create in India for the past 3 years of operations both as a wholesaler and as a retailer ? How many jobs our Indian retailers like Future group, Aditya Birla retail and Reliance retail created in the past 3 years?  We will clearly see that they did not even create a million jobs!

C) Also, government does not talk how many Kirana stores will shut down in the next 5 years and how many homes will be denied of a source of income ?

D) Wal-Mart or for that matter any retailer works on the least number of workers per square feet (lean management structures ) ,and so it will kill the 50 Kirana stores thereby get at least 250 people out of jobs and then create 50 jobs per super market.  Is this factored in the statement? I am willing to prove this in the current retail scenario leave alone the scenario when the foreign retailers come in?

 2.     Several billion dollars of investment in retail

A) If retail is a great business, the government banks should give loans from domestic financial institutions and let the homegrown retailers grow and build scale and size and let the profits remain in India. Why should we give 51 % of the ownership to foreign players, as these people will sell to Indians and take the profits out of our country.  USA / Europe will solve their income and earnings problems and India will get into problems of high inflation and more volatile stock market. Also, Indian retailer being less than 50 % of their share in the retail will become servants to these MNC chains under the current 51 % FDI norms.

B) Why did the government not start with 26 % FDI in multi brand retail for the first five years? Why suddenly start with 51 %. Please justify?

C) Often it has been quoted that the foreign retailers will bring technical know how to Indian retail market and boost the economies of scale and productivity? Which technical know how is the government talking, it needs to explain? I have been a COO / Board member of a major fortune 20 company’s retail operations in India, and I can tell you that these foreign retailers only bring money and no other expertise! They work on high profits, highly automated environment and lean man power structures.  So government’s reason of the technical know how is fallacious and is showing that we Indians do not understand retail. Let us look inward and see our home-grown retailers like Future group and Aditya Birla retail .They are certainly growing . Government must bring out a detailed white paper on the so-called ‘Technical Know how’ these foreign retailers bring to Indian retail market?

D) With these billions of dollars coming in India, India’s real estate will become expensive thereby, contributing to keep the inflations levels high for the medium class not just for real estate but for all the sectors

E) Also, these billions of dollars are not charities to India or Indians . These are investments by retailers which follow a ROI ( return on investment concept ) for every dollar spent. So for sure , they people will invest in retail one dollar and take out 10 dollars from India over the next couple of years . Retail is mostly done on inventory management which is on credit from vendors . These retailers follow a credit cycle which ranges from 15 days to over month . So with a double-digit profit margin , these retailers will only be investing one time into infrastructure and then make money without investing at all ,as all the inventory is on a credit cycle . ‘Sell and pay’ is the mantra for these FMCG retailers ! Even the space which is rented by these retailers is leased to product companies for hefty display charges. These retailers charge a heavy fee for listing products in its store before selling .Our policy makers , wake up and understand the real dangerous game of FDI in retail and don’t get carried away by the billions of dollars of investment . It is not true . One time investment by these retailers will be a life long profit for their parent company’s home country

3) Farmers will get more than 12-15 % of the consumer price they get for fruits and vegetables

A)    In reality, farmers will never get a higher price but will be exploited by these MNC Chains  .In fact, these MNC retailers will push in for stringent quality checks and other prohibitively expensive conditions for these farmers thereby, forcing the poor Indian farmer out of his livelihood. Most of the retailers will take to contract farming, and thus the farmers will be reduced to being laborers in the hands of these MNC chains.

B)    The History of these MNC chains has shown the these chains are out to squeeze blood out of their vendors and farmers will certainly be vendors for these MNC chains and nothing else . Wal-Mart and other retailers are facing dozens of cases of exploitation and gender bias in developed country where the legal system is strong . Imagine what will happen in our country ?

4) Consumers will get producers at Cheaper Prices, as competition will bring down the prices

A)    Even without competition the prices will come down by a few paisas or may be a few rupees, but, all these chains will increase the MRP  (Maximum retail prices) of the products, and so the consumer will end up paying more than what s/he pays today. Take an example of the MNC pharma companies. Since there is a ceiling of price increase by 10 %, so every year the pharma companies increase the prices by 9-9.5 % and thereby, circumventing the price increase regulations.

B)    It is clear that the consumer is not a winner, no one pay’s from its pocket OR profits to the consumer. If there is a price increase on the input costs, the same is passed on to the as an increased MRP or the quantity is reduced for the same price. So the consumer’s pocket is always ripped apart by these retailers

 

5) 30 % mandatory sourcing from small-scale sector will help small industry

A)    This has not been a convincing argument, so we are trying to tell that a small company out of Varanasi will compete with HUL and win? Come on Dr.Manmohan Singh, are you trying to fool Indians? I understand that you studied at Oxford, doesn’t mean that rest of the Indians are going to get carried away with these statements

B)    Also, these MNC chains will put conditions that are either too stringent to be complied to or prohibitively expensive to be implemented by these SME’s, and so finally, these chains will find a reason to evade buying from these SME’s. Also, that the SME’s are not just limited to India, but across the world, so probably, Chinese SME’s would benefit more than Indian SME’s

C)    These retailers charge a heavy fee for listing products in its store before selling. How will SME’s afford that ? The fee currently for Indian retailers varies from few thousand to over a lac for products for companies . SME’s will never be able to benefit from these chains even if they are able sell to them, as they will pay for listing and then cry for the payment – which will depend on the vendor payment cycle varying for weeks to months and small vendors (SME’s ) cannot survive this big box retail game

6) 70 % of retail is in food items and these are mostly sourced locally

A) If 70 % of the retail is in food items and this is sourced locally, why allow 51 % of the profits to go out of India? So FDI should not have crossed more than 30 %!

B) Local Indian retailers (existing Kirana stores ) must be trained to deal in these food items and deliver better value for the country and its economy.

C) This argument of the government goes against its own policy. So whereas, 70 % of the products would be food items, 51 % profits from these categories would go out of our country, thereby, clearing pushing the inflation higher perpetually for the next couple of decades. As there will be less money in our country chasing more goods ( as money would have found its way to parent MNC)  – Simple economics Mr. Kaushik Basu!

 

7) Ikea already sourcing 30 % of inputs from India

A) So if Ikea is already sourcing 30 % inputs from India, let other chains also do the same before starting their shop in India.

B) If these MNC chains buy from India and sell in India and take 51% of the profits abroad, what is India’s gain? The government must come out clean on this?

8) Approval only after investors meet all conditions, including 50 % investment in back end

A) This statement of investment in backend is a foolish statement. Already 100 % FDI is allowed in wholesale, why justify it for retail and link it up? Let these retailers first invest in back-end for the first five years and next five years invest in front end

B) Government has FCI (Food corporation of India) godowns and what is the government doing for enhancing the efficiency of this biggest warehousing corporation – Can this FCI not  become the Cash and Carry for small retailers ? A drastic improvement in supply chain of FCI godowns can bring down the wastage of food grains by hundreds of tons if not thousands of tons. Please pursue the project of Mr.Atal Behari Vajpayee of Golden Quadrilateral and link up all the FCI godowns, and start a national Agriculture produce transport corporation to start weekly transport during the harvesting season from the farms to FCI and nearest towns. The farmers co-operative and IFFCO should manage this. With this, farmers will not only get good prices but the wastage will be reduced substantially. Why are you looking at FDI to solve this simple problem of inflation . This can not only solve the inflation problem but also improve productivity at all levels , create more jobs ( may be , millions of low & middle-income but high productivity jobs ) and reduce inflation .

C) Learn from ‘operation flood’ by AMUL and how it solved the shortage of milk problem of our country and created a world-class brand. See what M.S.Swaminathan did with ‘Green Revolution’ to increase the production of grains in our country. Please do not justify that foreign retailers will help you bring down inflation. Remember that ‘Inflation is reversible but FDI is not’ and do not sell our country to foreigners for a short-term gain of a few billion dollars to our economy. This is anyway not the dollars to our economy, but the investment of dollars to take back dollars. I am sure that all these MNC chains a ROI (return of investment) method of calculating the investment returns. So I wish to ask our government that what does the ‘retail FDI dollar’ bring to India, which Indian government cannot do with its own money?

9) Government will have the first right over procurement of farm produce

A) This statement has no value. Government has shown no concern for farmers except considering them as voters and leaving them at the mercy of rain gods.

Questions that the government must answer

  1. What has the government spent to train local Kirana stores in the past five years?  When yesterday only the government asked for Rs.56000 crore of the tax payers money despite a huge budget deficit, why did it not ask for even a Rs. 1000 crore for retailers training and up gradation?
  2. Why did the government not start with FDI in retail at 26 %? Why suddenly at 51 %? Has the government become a lobbyist for MNC chains?
  3. Has the government done its own independent studies for the impact of retail chains on Kirana stores?
  4. The biggest plank of allowing the FDI is that inflation will come down. So despite allowing FDI, if the inflation does not come down, will the government revoke FDI in retail? Does that rider appear in the CP (Condition Precedents) for allowing FDI in retail?
  5. Government needs to prove that FDI in retail can create million jobs every year. How and why, and which retailer will do that. All this must be put in the business case for allowing FDI? Why is government becoming the spokesperson for these MNC retail chains? What is the deal?
  6. Where and how much wills the retailers invest in back-end? This has not been specified?
  7. Why has the government not capped the retail margins of foreign retailers in India?
  8. See point 5 B, why have women self-help groups / handicrafts been excluded from being the beneficiaries of the retail entry
  9. Why are retailers not mandated to invest in retail training ?
  10. More questions to follow

Rajendra Pratap Gupta

Healthcare I Retail I Public Policy

Email:  office@rajendragupta.in , office.rajendra@gmail.com

Corruption mera Karma aur Coalition mera Dharma


Dear Manmohan ji,

The common man is really frustrated with your ‘blame game’ approach in the recent press conference . When you became the PM, we had hoped that an economics Professor who had been educated in the best of institutions in India and abroad , could impress upon the people in his party and change the governance of the nation without compromise. But , by staying silent on all the unethical activities in the congress , not only you denigrated the national institutions , you lowered the stature of the Prime Minster’s post & eroded the trust of the common man .

In the press conference , you said that, ‘let’s not just focus on scams as that lowers the image of the nation’. I wish to point Dr.Singh that, not just the image but also the financial health of the nation has been affected due to your being a patron of corruption !!

You have clearly conveyed that ‘ Corruption is your Karma & Coalition is your Dharma’. While it is known that you had some good qualities like knowledge , honesty etc , but you did not exercise those qualities , so in a sense , you became a greedy professor wanting to just stick to the Chair of the PM .

I am wondering how come Pranab Mukherjee was not questioned in this scam when he is the finance minister ? Is he just responsible for collecting taxes and not about the financial loss to the nation ? He must also follow Raja in Tihar . No one is above law ! Also, If you have the guts , please question Mukesh Ambani . He is the one who routed international calls as local calls and committed a criminal offence. What has your government done ? The Telecom co’s CEO going to CBI office and having coffee & lunch does not impress the common man. We know that these visits might be a ‘eyewash’ for the common man at the behest of congress party, and the common man is made to believe that your government is acting on corruption . Do not put off the JPC demand quoting these arrests .Suresh Kalmadi is still enjoying the dollars made in CWG !! Why he is he not in Tihar ?

Dr.Singh , every one in India is talking about the black money in Swiss banks , Dr.Singh , India has more black money than all the Swiss banks combined ! Why Pranab Dada does not start taxing expenditure rather than taxing income !! Every government officer is directly or indirectly involved in bribery , every business is into tax evasion , every builder takes a portion of the cost as black money , every minister fights election on black money . Still you think that only Swiss banks have India’s black money ? Swiss banks , I believe would only have 10-15 % of the black money , rest is still in India , and may be, some money might be in middle eastern countries .

Please change your tax system. If you tax one’s income , he might not disclose it , but at the end, the money is used to purchase something , so go and tax expenditure , the government will collect more taxes , and we would be happy paying taxes on expenditure !!

Now back to my question of your moral flexibility to run the government .

Why have you tied up with DMK in a poll bound Tamilnadu ??

Why has the CBI let off Mulayam in the disproportionate assets case ?

Is this a part of Sonia’s five pronged approach to fight corruption ???

Rahul : Where is your clean up of the party going ? Are you cleaning up the honest people by such tie ups ? What about your call to go alone in polls ? While I was at 10 Janpath with you a few months ago , a first generation leader whom you inducted in your party had met up with myself , and he told me that you are just getting educated people in the party . So all new congress leaders have started enrolling in MBA !!. Finally , this call for educated leaders is leading to elite with money bags joining youth congress. You are totally disconnected from the reality on ground !! By the way , Gandhi’s are always disconnected with reality . Nothing new !!

Dr.Singh , by asking Supreme court to directly monitor the probe, you have shown that you have no interest to act on your own or you do not trust that you will do a good job in the case ! We all know why retired supreme court judges get plum posting !! So if nothing comes out of these so called ‘Blame Free investigations’ ( Which we know will happen ) , you will shed off your load saying that you had asked the top most court to direct the probe and that you are like ‘Ceaser’s Wife’ etc etc………………….. and you cannot be blamed for the culprits being acquitted !!

When you constitute the JPC , please also mandate it to come out with an action plan that can

a) Investigate the wealth creation formula of the ex Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan .

b) Bring back the black money and put the people behind the black money in Jail

c) Recover the loot of public money by people like Lalu , Maya & other leaders like Sharad Pawar etc.

d) Take action for CWG loot

e) Investigate on all massive loot cases happening in the nation

f) Frame up laws and set up a system say a CIA ( Central Corruption Investigating agency ), which can take suo moto action against any one ( Even the President of India ) , should the need arise without going through any approval , and this institution must report to the supreme body – Legislature every six months . This body should be adequately equipped with resources ( legal, financial and human resources ) to decisively act against corruption , and all top level appointments must be made by a body consisting of the P.M. , CJI , CVC & Opposition leader .

I also want you to ask CBI to investigate if Apollo Hospitals Group paid money to A.Raja. I was told by none other than the brother-in-law of A.Raja that Apollo had paid Rs.700.00 crore to Raja

I am also quite surprised that you have quoted that you will not quit the post of PM. It is the height of being shameless

Dr.Singh , history will paint you as Mohammaed-Bin-Tuglaq- A knowledgeable and wise king who caused lot of misery and pain to his people

If you do not shape up, wait for 2014, and the common man will throw the congress government and return results like Bihar

Rajendra Pratap Gupta

A Common Man

http://www.rajendragupta.wordpress.com

What’s Happening ??


Dear National Leaders,

For the last couple of months , we are seeing a ‘high octane’ battle being fought between the parties for two issues ‘ Corruption in congress and unchecked inflation’. As a common man , I am worried that this great nation is going to dogs because of the lack of governance in the ruling party , and lack of outcome based action in the opposition ( which needs to unite for a national cause ) .

The current government is a serious threat to the national security One side , Rahul Gandhi says that Congress will fight corruption , and Sonia says that she has a five pronged strategy for fighting corruption , one the other side , we see that congress goes and co-habits with DMK for the Tamilnadu elections, and the government is shy of disclosing the names of 17 account holders in Swiss banks , so it clearly tells what kind of five pronged approach congress has to fight corruption .

Arrest of Raja by CBI is a tactic by congress , CBI is not a prosecuting agency, it is an investigative agency.If congress was serious , the system would have sent him to judicial custody – I am sure that intelligent people who understand the mechanization of congress , get the meaning.

My biggest worry is that Indian military is getting weaker day by day , and we are waiting for an attack to happen , India could face serious losses and a major setback , if that were to happen. I do hope that BJP will take action . Scams can be handled , may be, even some lost money could be recovered. But if we are attacked by a foreign power and we fail , We would have lost it all.

Congress has to go now and so has to the Gandhi Dynasty from Indian politics . I would suggest BJP to start Egypt like movement so that our Hosni Mubarak’s ( Gandhi’s ) and Mohammad Bin Tugluk ( Manmohan ) go soon , and the country can be put back on track We don’t want our great nation to suffer more .

 Please get your act together

A Common Man

Rajendra Pratap Gupta

http://www.rajendragupta.wordpress.com

Let not inefficiency , inflation and corruption get into 2011


Dear Mr. Singh ,

Last year was the worst year of the decade, and perhaps after independence due to your weak leadership as Prime Minister.

I read today in the newspapers that, the food inflation is in double digits , i feel it is not just double digits , but a double blow for the poor or medium class fixed earners, whose salary does not increase with inflation . Think about daily wage earners that earn 40-60 Rs a day and manage their family of four ( two children and parents , though we know that poor people have more than  two children !!) ? Do you not feel the guilt , that you have caused irreparable damage to the nation, and its people both economically , and its image in the eyes of the world ? Today we are called a scam friendly corrupt nation – a nation of scamsters!!

People have got carried away with your degrees, but seeing your miserable performance , i have realised the difference between being educated , being knowledgeable and being wise . You might be educated , but you are definitely not knowledgeable and not at all wise ! A Prime Minister is expected to be Wise and pro-active on important issues . You have built your good image , but ruined the nation’s image !

You and Pranab are fooling the people of this nation by showing 8-9 % GDP growth and a higher forecast . Reality is before us, it is difficult to survive for a common man in today’s time when one cannot get anything done without paying money , when one cannot live within his salary seeing the high price of daily food intake . A big Shame on you both and Sonia !!  With such revolting conditions , i am sure you are working for pushing people to take to Naxalism and crime !!

Two days back i was talking to Dr.Murli Manohar Joshi  and discussing the current developments , and i told him that, Dr.Joshi you could have proved to be a better PM ! Incidentally , there is only one Dr. in Congress and in BJP. In Congress ,It is yourself ,  and Dr.Joshi is the Dr. of BJP. I have had a chance to work with him on several issues , and have seen his grasp of real issues facing the nation,  and no wonder , even you have been high in praise for his abilities as PAC , Chairman, besides, other colleagues in congress . I am sure that he would have proved to be a much better Prime Minister . I cannot comment on others , as i do not know other leaders much .

My humble request Manmohan ji, give Indians a chance to celebrate the new year , Please resign and go ……………we do not want more corruption , more inflation and more GDP !!

We would happily settle for no corruption , low inflation or no inflation and a moderate GDP .

Go now Sir , take rest .Let’s celebrate New Year with a new Hope

Hope this does not fall on deaf ears

Wish you a great year ahead

Rajendra Pratap Gupta

Email : Office@rajendragupta.in

www.rajendragupta.wordpress.com

Food Inflation – the real issue is of planned production & storage


Pulses – the pulse of the nation : Pre-dominantly , Indians are vegetarians , and so the protein requirements are met through consumption of protein rich – pulses

We have always been worried about high food inflation charging the government for inefficient handling of the prices. Often we quote the high price of pulses . Let’s do a little digging on why pulses cost more when 65 % of our nation is engaged in agriculture ?

Pulses production in India is 12-15 million tonnes , and the requirement is 18-20 million tonnes .  Looks like pulses production have never been planned by the ministry of agriculture or the planning commission ; this is when we have celebrated 63 years of independence recently !!

Second issue is that despite poor production , even storage has not been attended to .

FCI- Food Corporation of India has 60.5 million tonnes of food grains ( all kinds of grains & not just pulses )  . This is good enough of quantity to give 21 KG of grain every month to people below BPL .  Sadly enough , 30 % of the 60.5 Million tonnes gets wasted every year due to storage conditions

Issue is very simple , and the policy makers need to plan production and storage to address the gaps . Once this is done , we should never have issues related to irrational prices of food grains

Rajendra Pratap Gupta

Email : office@rajendragupta.in

Increase in prices for the common Man- Solution


Price increase of basic commodities – Solution

Recently , we heard what Sharad Pawar said . ‘ I am not an astrologer to predict when the prices will come down’. He also stated that, t is the collective responsibility of the cabinet and not just his to take the blame’

With this , two things are clear :

One , he agrees that he has no plan to control prices, and Secondly, the government does acknowledge his wrong policies that lead to increase in prices. The blame must go to the failure of the congress government to take care of the common man. More people may die due to high price of basic food stuff this year

I suggest that we have a State Food pricing Authority in each state to fix the price of Agricultural products and the same should be strictly enforced . This department should be entrusted with the Public Distribution system . All this should come under Central Food Pricing Authority as it will involve imports and exports in some cases. The price for each and every agricultural produce like wheat , rice , pulses and vegetables should be fixed annually by the authority .

No trader should have the right to charge on the whims and fancies, and all the prices should be as fixed by state food pricing authority with the involvement of the Central Food Pricing Authority. 

Food Should be made the Fundamental right . After all , we don’t expect the Hungry person standing up and asking for right to freedom , equality ,etc.. etc….Food first ……………country later……..

Hope it works Rajendra Gupta ————————————————————————

Rajendra Pratap Gupta President

Country First 

 Email: President@countryfirst.org / mail@rajendragupta.org