New Delhi, March 23 While the BJP government talks about economic self-sufficiency, the country's dependence on importing oil and gas has risen to 90 per cent today from 70 per cent twenty years ago, John Brittas, MP from Kerala, said in the Rajya Sabha on Monday.
During a discussion on the Appropriation Bill, Brittas said that if oil prices continue to rise as they are today, there will be a cumulative impact of Rs 1.5 - 2 lakh crore on India.
“I don't know whether the government has taken note of the impact that it is going to have on our economy,” Brittas said.
He stated that the entire civil aviation sector is in crisis, and he alleged that the government has not only increased air ticket prices but also imposed a surcharge.
“Every sector is facing immense pressure,” Brittas said.
Emphasizing that 20 years ago, the dependence on importing oil and gas was 70 per cent, he said, “They talk about Atmanirbhar (self-sufficiency), whereas the dependence on oil and gas has gone up to 90 per cent.”
“From mining, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, every sector is in disarray. Millions of people are unemployed,” Brittas added.
He mentioned that the remittance inflow into India is about Rs 16 lakh crore, out of which Kerala alone receives a remittance of Rs 2.2 lakh crore.
“What will happen to these remittances? What is the situation of the diaspora? There are almost 1 crore people in the Middle East. 10 per cent of Keralites reside in the Middle East. A bleak future is staring at them. The government has nothing to say about it,” Brittas stated.
He criticised Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for justifying the government's silence on the ongoing West Asia conflict by saying that silence is statecraft.
He also criticised the alleged subservience of the government to the United States and noted that even as the US said that it would not stop with the colonization, the Indian government believes that abject surrender to America's interests will help our economy.
“We need to speak up against this immoral, illegal war when 165 children were killed in a bomb attack in a Tehran school. I expected the government to stand up and speak,” Brittas said.
He added, “When the supreme leader of Iran was assassinated, I thought there would be condemnation from this government, whereas the advisors of this government advised that belated condolences are sufficient. There is no need for condemnation."
Recalling former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s foreign policy, he stated that Nehru said, “We will not sacrifice the hard-won freedom for any material benefits."
He also recalled the attack on Iraq by the US and allied forces in 2003 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister and said that the same Parliament had passed a resolution condemning that war.
“Now when there is an illegal war fought, our Indian Parliament is a mute spectator,” he said.
He demanded that the Finance Minister should brief Parliament about the impact of this war on the Indian economy.
