In the battle within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over who would become the Prime Ministerial candidate, thumbs up for Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan over Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi has come from a very unlikely quarter. Speaking at the launch of International Centre for Human Development, rural development minister Jairam Ramesh showered praises on the MP government for beating Haryana and Punjab and emerging as the largest wheat producing state in the country. In the current financial year, wheat procurement in Madhya Pradesh is estimated at about eight million tonnes. The rural development minister also commended the Chattisgarh government for rice production in the state.
Though Ramesh did praise BJP-ruled governments of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, he did not leave a chance to criticise the Gujarat government. ‘The Gujarati model of development is about entrepreneurship, commerce, you can’t argue with them over GDP,’ said the rural development minister sarcastically. He said in terms of women empowerment and sanitation, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka lag behind Bangladesh.
The minister also found support from Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, when it came to the human development index of Gujarat. While Narendra Modi won the elections in Gujarat for the third time in a row, Sen seemed to disagree with the development policies adopted by the state government. ‘There is a lot to learn in terms of physical infrastructure from Gujarat, but they are not interested in human development,’ said Amartya Sen.
Sen said when it comes to poverty, literacy, immunisation and malnourishment in children under the age of five, Gujarat lags behind states like Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka. While malnourishment in children under the age of five in Gujarat stands at 60.9 in Kerela it stands at 16.3. Also, when it comes to immunisation, the state of Gujarat again paints a dismissal picture, the figure of immunisation in Gujarat is at 45.2, whereas in Tamil Nadu the figure stands at 80.9.
Also, touching upon the health sector of the country, Sen said that the health system has collapsed in the country and it is time for a total rehaul of the health care system in the country. He also said that in a country like India the agitations have to move beyond demand for cheap electricity and raising the caps of LPG cylinders when half of the country doesn’t have electricity or cylinders at their home.
Though Ramesh did praise BJP-ruled governments of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, he did not leave a chance to criticise the Gujarat government. ‘The Gujarati model of development is about entrepreneurship, commerce, you can’t argue with them over GDP,’ said the rural development minister sarcastically. He said in terms of women empowerment and sanitation, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka lag behind Bangladesh.
The minister also found support from Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, when it came to the human development index of Gujarat. While Narendra Modi won the elections in Gujarat for the third time in a row, Sen seemed to disagree with the development policies adopted by the state government. ‘There is a lot to learn in terms of physical infrastructure from Gujarat, but they are not interested in human development,’ said Amartya Sen.
Sen said when it comes to poverty, literacy, immunisation and malnourishment in children under the age of five, Gujarat lags behind states like Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka. While malnourishment in children under the age of five in Gujarat stands at 60.9 in Kerela it stands at 16.3. Also, when it comes to immunisation, the state of Gujarat again paints a dismissal picture, the figure of immunisation in Gujarat is at 45.2, whereas in Tamil Nadu the figure stands at 80.9.
Also, touching upon the health sector of the country, Sen said that the health system has collapsed in the country and it is time for a total rehaul of the health care system in the country. He also said that in a country like India the agitations have to move beyond demand for cheap electricity and raising the caps of LPG cylinders when half of the country doesn’t have electricity or cylinders at their home.