Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday praised West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for her effort to check high inflation by improving supply of food grains in the state. He termed the effort of the state government as a “constructive and positive one”.
“The essential parts of our inflationary pressures are due to the supply side constraints. I do believe that the state governments ought to play a very constructive and positive role which some of the states like West Bengal has played. The chief minister (Ms Banerjee) herself intervened and as a result the supply constraints have been removed to some extent and the supply was more,” Mr Mukherjee said, while addressing a Ficci programme in Kolkata on Monday. His comments are highly significant, especially when the relations between the Congress and the Trinamul Congress, the partners at the Centre as well as in the state, have become strained now-a-days.
He also said that the Centre had taken measures to improve supply of food grains to check high inflation. “We are taking more lasting and positive steps. In the last two budgets, I made special provisions for the second Green Revolution for pulse and edible oil districts. It has started yielding the results,” he added.
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Young Thackerays join poll campaign
Age correspondent
Mumbai, Feb. 6
While they have always criticised the “dynastic politics” of the Congress, ironically, the third generation of the Thackerays has now become active in election campaign for the municipal elections to be held on February 16. While Shiv Sena executive chief Uddhav Thackeray’s sons Aditya and Tejas kicked off the Sena’s campaign in Pune on Sunday, MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s son Amit participated in the MNS’ road show in Mumbai.
Aditya, who is already in the political arena, took part in a roadshow in Pune along with his brother Tejas. He said people should vote out the “corrupt” Congress-NCP from Pune municipal corporation.