NEW DELHI: Congress on Monday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government over “skyrocketing prices” of food and other commodities, using the popular Bollywood song “Kya hua tera vada” to question the PM’s silence on inflation.Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared a media report on rising prices of food items, pulses and cooking oil, and alleged that the increase was putting pressure on household budgets.“The skyrocketing prices of food items in the country have broken the back of the middle and poor classes,” Ramesh said in a post in Hindi. He said rising prices were making pulses and other essential food items increasingly difficult for poorer households to afford.“But the Prime Minister remains silent on inflation. The country is asking, ‘Where have the ‘achche din’ gone, Prime Minister ji?’ Are they only left in sermons?” he said.“The people go hungry, the government stays silent,” Ramesh said, questioning whether this was the “new India”.Taking a swipe at the government, Ramesh wrote, “Kya hua tera vada? Woh kasam, woh irada?”, a reference to the popular song from the 1977 Bollywood film Hum Kisise Kum Nahin.Ramesh claimed that prices of several everyday commodities had risen sharply in recent months, adding to the burden on households.“In the past month, spice prices have surged by a massive 10% to 25%. Green cardamom has risen from 4000 rupees to 4400 rupees/kg, black cardamom from 2400 rupees to 2800 rupees/kg, and cumin has jumped from 360 rupees to 400 rupees/kg. Mace prices have shot up directly from 2500 rupees to 3000 rupees per kg,” Jairam said.
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“Arhar dal has increased from 100 rupees to 130 rupees/kg, chana dal from 70 rupees to 100 rupees/kg, and urad from 120 rupees to 140 rupees/kg. Mustard oil has reached 210 rupees/litre from 190 rupees, and Safola oil has climbed to 280 rupees/litre from 240 rupees,” he added.Ramesh also claimed that onion prices had risen sharply between June and September. “From June to September, the all-India average retail price of onions rose from 29.50 rupees/kg to 53.78 rupees/kg – a staggering 82.3% increase in just three and a half months,” he said.The Congress leader called on the Modi government to take immediate measures to address what he described as “uncontrolled inflation” and provide relief to consumers.
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