Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has urged chief minister Yogi Adityanath to set up a task force for economic reconstruction of Uttar Pradesh in the backdrop of adverse impact of the lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic on the state’s economy.
Priyanka, in a letter to CM written on April 16, said the task force with experts in economics and planning should work out a roadmap for state’s economic reconstruction to face the ‘economic tsunami’ following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Priyanka said the Covid-19 pandemic was adversely affecting the condition of handloom weavers, labourers and small industry. She said the state’s glass, brassware, carpet, furniture, handloom, leather, pottery, fishery, poultry and many other sectors were in bad shape and facing a serious impact of the economic slowdown following the pandemic.
On farmers, Priyanka said the state government had allowed use of combine harvester machines for harvesting wheat crop but there was a need to give permits to harvester machines as they come to UP from other states. She said dues of cane growers should be cleared and compensation should be distributed to farmers whose crops were damaged by hailstorm.
She said families of labourers had been facing shortage of food and cash due to the lockdown.
{{/usCountry}}She said families of labourers had been facing shortage of food and cash due to the lockdown.
{{/usCountry}}“As a considerable number of workers have not been registered with the government they fail to get benefits of government schemes. The state government should ensure that benefit of government schemes reached unregistered workers/labourers,” she said while insisting that the food grains should be distributed even to those who do not have a ration card.
She appreciated the move to provide free ration to MNREGA and said no financial relief was, however, being given to them. She said the amount of Rs 611 crore disbursed to them was payment of their due wages and the state government should announce a package for them as well.