New Delhi, March 16 Opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha on Monday criticised the government over its handling of the West Asia crisis, warning of severe repercussions for India’s trade, employment, energy security, and rural economy.
Participating in a debate over the Appropriation Bill, CPI’s Sandosh Kumar P said the conflict was not a distant political issue but one with “direct consequences” for India.
AAP’s Sanjay Singh alleged the crisis was “self-imposed” due to strained ties with Iran. BJD’s Sulata Deo flagged LPG shortages, and YSRCP’s S Niranjan Reddy cautioned about looming fertilizer challenges, underscoring the vulnerability of India’s agriculture sector.
Sandosh Kumar said the ongoing conflict in West Asia is not a distant political issue for India.
"It has direct consequences for our trade, employment, and energy security. Unfortunately, despite the gravity of the situation, the Union Government appears unprepared," he said.
On India's economic dependence on the Gulf region, the CPI member said India's total trade with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is about USD 178 billion and exports to these countries are USD 56-57 billion annually. India's exports include agricultural products, food items, textiles, engineering goods, and pharmaceuticals.
Moreover, it employs millions of workers across rural and semi-urban India.
"If the conflict continues and trade routes are disrupted, these exports will decline. This will directly affect farmers, small producers, and workers, leading to unemployment, particularly in the rural economy," he said.
At such times, the rural economy earlier had a cushion in MGNAREGA, a programme that provided livelihood security. But this government has systematically weakened it with another VB-G RAM G (Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin) framework, which is still not even notified.
He asked what contingency plans does the government have to deal with such a situation?
"How will it support returning workers and protect the families that depend on these incomes? Another concern is energy security. India imports more than 85 per cent of its crude oil requirements. Much of this is linked to supplies from West Asia," he said.
Kumar said there is a need to understand the reality and address it.
AAP member Sanjay Singh said the Leader of House has said that the Opposition is not cooperating in this crisis. However, Singh asked who brought this crisis to India.
He called this a self-imposed crisis. The government knew that 60 per cent of the crude and 50 per cent gas meant for India passes through the Strait of Hormuz.
When over 60 per cent of the strait comes under control of Iran, then what was the need to have adverse relationship with Iran, he alleged.
Singh alleged that this crisis, which the nation is facing today, is sponsored by the Prime Minister.
"Iran was our traditional friend, this was also mentioned by our Prime Minister, when he had earlier visited Iran," he said.
"However when Khamenei was killed, he remains silent. 160 school children are killed and we remained silent."
Not only this, one of the Iranian ships which was returning after participating in a military exercise hosted by India was torpedoed by the US. In this more than 100 of its crew members died and the Prime Minister remained silent.
Sulata Deo of BJD also raised concerns over the shortage of LPG gas. She also questioned the timing of government's decision to send 5,000 tonne of diesel to Bangladesh, when the country itself is facing crisis.
Deo said the current crisis shows the government has no vision.
S Niranjan Reddy of YSRCP highlighted the challenges faced by the agri sector and raised the potential crisis of fertilizer.
Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, in the supplementary demands, sought Rs 15,000 crore additional allocation under the nutrient-based subsidy.
India imports 100 per cent of potash, and 90 per cent of phosphatic raw materials.