All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary Sirivella Prasad asked the State and Central governments to come out with a financial roadmap to reassure the poor who have been severely affected by the lockdown.
In a statement on Saturday, Mr. Prasad criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal urging citizens to light lamps on Sunday evening as a symbolic move bereft of any concrete solutions.
“At a time when people on the frontlines are working overtime to fight the pandemic, Mr. Modi is resorting to gimmicks and symbolism. Clanging utensils and lighting lamps will not offer any solutions to the problem of shortages of equipment faced by medical personnel or the hardships faced by countless migrant labourers, lakhs of employees and thousands of MSME units,” Mr. Prasad said.
“The unplanned manner in which the lockdown was implemented has led to chaos and has caused great hardship to innumerable migrant workers all over India. It was heart-breaking to see these people walking for hundreds of kilometres to reach their villages without food or shelter. It is the duty of both the Central and State Governments and all Congress party leaders and workers to do their utmost to lessen their suffering,” the AICC secretary said.
“The Central Government as well as State Government should immediately announce a Financial Action Plan that would reassure the poor people and also provide adequate financial support to the sections that were left out, including farmers, tenant farmers, landless agricultural workers, MGNREGA workers without any paid work and laid-off industrial workers. Also, the supply of 10 kg free ration to every individual through PDS for the 21-day lockdown period needed to be implemented. It is the foremost duty of the government to ensure shelter, rent relief, wages and food to the poor,” he said.
The 21-day nationwide lockdown is necessary in order to contain the pandemic, but would be futile unless it is accompanied by extensive testing. Only extensive testing yielded results in many countries, he said.
