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Godly visits come cheap for
India’ poor, not food
WSN Network
BANGALORE: Hair
brained ideas come dime a dozen to Indian politicians but their
particular favourites are those that keep poor people vote banks
happy without alleviating them out of their poverty. Here is one
that the BJP’s Karnataka government has come up with. It has brought
a scheme to subsidise “weekend” pilgrimages by the poor in the
state. The scheme aimed at spreading racketeering under the mask of
religiosity will exploit the sentiments of the poor, euphemistically
those “below poverty line”. They will remain perpetually hungry and
malnourished but will be helped to go on pilgrimages to various
temple towns in the state over weekends. These may not assuage their
hunger, but will provide nourishment for the soul, claims the
government.
The government
would provide travel and accommodation at subsidised rates but not
food. The scheme is estimated to cost Rs 10 crore, clearly an
underestimate if these are annual costs. Clearly, the BJP government
is doing one better than the queen who asked the poor to eat cake if
they do not have bread. Once upon a time in a distant land, so the
legend goes, the hungry when they demanded bread were advised to eat
cake. Unmindful of what happened to those who made the suggestion,
the poor in the Karnataka are being offered cut-price tariff for
pilgrimages. Such seemingly harebrained schemes are simply a cover
for calculated racketeering where public funds are going to be
pocketed by bus operators, temple touts and so on, all in the name
of the poor. True, Rs 10 crore is not a large sum in these times of
profligate spending by industry and government. After all, much
money has been made all along the line in the matter of issuing the
below poverty line ration cards, now held apparently by the
overwhelming majority of the people of the state.
17
June 2009
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