Delhi BJP holds protests on food security scheme, onion issue

As the Sheila Dikshit Government rolled out the food security scheme with much fanfare, Delhi BJP today held a protest here alleging that it would lead to "drastic reduction" in foodgrains allocation to the poor.
Some of the leaders, including BJP national executive member Shri Pravesh Verma, were injured as police used water canons to disperse the protesters who marched from Delhi BJP office to Talkatora stadium taking on the government on the food security scheme and its alleged failure to handle "onion crisis".
While maintaining that BJP was not against the food security scheme, Delhi BJP President Vijay Goel accused the Congress government of robbing millions of household by not checking prices of essential commodities and pushing them into the vicious circle of "food insecurity".

Goel claimed that, Dilli Annashree Yojana, launched last year by Delhi government has fallen flat.
"Antyodya and Annapurna Yojana have also met similar fate in the past. The Chief Minister is an expert in making announcements but her past record shows that her government is a disaster when it comes to implementing these schemes," he said.
The Delhi BJP Chief also said that the proposed food security scheme would actually reduce entitlements of food grains.

"Earlier, every household was entitled for 35 Kg of food grains per month. Now a family of three would get only 15 Kg food grains and a family of four 20 Kgs and a family of five only 25 Kgs," Goel said.

The party demanded that there should be adequate increase in entitlements under the food security scheme so that the poor and lower income groups are not adversely affected.
Demanding an inquiry into the onion crisis, Goel said instead of criticising BJP for selling onions at affordable prices to common man, the Chief Minister should sack her Food and Civil Supplies Minister for his "disastrous performance".