GUWAHATI, Sept 23 - The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) will resort to a State-wide one-hour sit-in demonstration from 11 am of September 28 in protest against the failure of the Central government to arrest rise in the prices of essential commodities and in support of the demand for implementation of the Food Security Act, 2013.
The APCC said in a statement here this evening that the UPA government at the Centre had adopted the Food Security Act to ensure supply of rice, atta and other essential items to the poor people at fair prices. This legislation has made provision to cover 84 per cent of the rural population and 50 per cent of the urban population and to supply to each of these families 35 kg of rice at the rate of Rs 3 per kg and atta at the rate of Rs 2 per kg every month.
The present government at the Centre has not allowed the Assam government to implement this legislation on various pleas and this has deprived lakhs of people in the State of their right to food security. This is an injustice to the people of the State, said the APCC.
Prices of essential items and construction materials have also been shooting up at a rapid pace after the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in New Delhi. The rate of rise in the prices of the essential commodities during the present Delhi regime is higher by two to three times, it alleged.
Congress members will stage the sit-in demonstration that day in front of the offices of the block development officers and the revenue circle officers and send memorandums to the Prime Minister of the country on the above issues.
