Author: aitc

Sir, on behalf of the All India Trinamool Congress, I rise to speak in response to the hon. President’s Address. My comments are, in no way, directed to the hon. President herself; I speak in opposition to the Government. Sir, I would like to quote these lines from the renowned Bengal writer and poet, Sukumar Ray, from the famous collection Abol Tabol published in 1923. “Why is it that the Raja of Bombagorer hangs mango pancakes in a painting, the queen wears a pillow on her head and the queen’s brother hammers nails into slices of bread?” This is a satirical poem. It shows that the Government is disconnected from reality. It is totally disconnected. The citizen is forced to become a mute spectator, mutely watching the Government’s absurd drama. This is exactly what this Government is all about. This is a Government disconnected from reality. This is a Government that does not know how to tackle the catastrophe of unemployment, the crisis of price rise, etc. This is a Government that does not know how to tackle the challenge of security in Manipur. This is a Government not guided by our great national motto, ‘Satyameva Jayate: let truth triumph’. This Government is not guided by Satyameva Jayate. Like the Raja of Bombagorer, this Government lives in an imagined reality. All it wants is media publicity and to set up a media narrative. This is precisely why India faces today an acute governance deficit. This Government came to power with the slogan ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’. Instead today, we have a Government which is minimum governance, maximum publicity. It is minimum governance, maximum publicity. I will give some examples of minimum governance, maximum publicity. Sir, let us start with the Kumbh mela, a classic example of minimum governance, maximum publicity. The publicity blitz and event management at this year’s Kumbh is so overpowering that it is as if there has never been a Kumbh mela before. I was a journalist. I covered the Kumbh mela in 2001 and 2013. There was much less hype, much more orderly for crowd management, much better crowd management, etc. This time, there has been this tragic stampede. More and more evidence is emerging. It is not just one stampede. There are two stampedes, maybe three stampedes. Investigative journalists are reporting far higher number of deaths than the Government is telling us. VIP culture at the Kumbh — many are saying and reporters are saying — is responsible for this. VIPs drove up to the ghats in their cars. They made the public walk. Routes were closed. Common pilgrims had to wait and became restless. Swami Swaroopanand Maharaj, President of Shankaracharya Parishad, has raised these concerns as well. The Government came to power saying that it is ending VIP culture. Today, this is the Government for the VIP, of the VIP and by the VIP. In contrast, in the Gangasagar Mela in Bengal, about one crore come every year; there is not a single incident. If a Kumbh Mela-type stampede had happened in Bengal at the Gangasagar, God forbid what would have happened? There would have been at least a dozen fact-finding missions that had been sent within 48 hours to Bengal. Once again I say, ‘minimum governance, maximum publicity’. Why is the BJP Government reluctant to share the numbers of dead? . Instead of showing real remorse and instead of showing accountability, the Government’s PR machine is going on and on and on. Minimum governance, maximum publicity. Then, Viksit Bharat. Periodic Labour Force Survey, PLFS 2023-24, has shown that half of India’s workers are self-employed. Half of India’s workers are self-employed. The education testing firm ‘Wheebox’ says that out of 3 lakh college graduates, only half are employable. Others are not employable. In 2023, only 32 per cent working-age women participated in the labour force. A former RBI Governor has written that without jobs, there can be no Viksit Bharat. Yet, the Government is going on and on about Viksit Bharat. Minimum governance, maximum publicity. The Government has utterly failed to provide quality allocations on education. Not a single Indian institute of higher education is ranked in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2025 and in the QS World University Rankings. Sir, the Union Government’s UGC draft regulations of 2025 savagely attack the autonomy of universities and are a body-blow to federalism. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), shows that half of class 3 students cannot read class 2 texts, half of class 5 students cannot read class 2 texts. Yet the Prime Minister is all smiles, photo-ops, ‘Pariksha pe Charcha’, exam warriors, books are being written. Minimum governance, maximum publicity! “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” is a slogan. Where is “Sabka Saath”? Where is “Sabka Vikas? Today, India is called the billionaire-raj. The top 1 per cent control 40 per cent of the national wealth. The bottom 50 per cent only have 3 per cent. Is that “Sabka Vikas” Yes, I can. I have it for you, Sir. Yes, I will give it to you. “Sabka Saath”, anyone? Where is “Sabka Saath” when the Prime Minister meets celebrities but does not meet farmers? Where is “Sabka Saath” when you don’t take the Opposition into confidence, when you bulldoze legislation in Parliament? Where is “Sabka Saath” when the Prime Minister has not held a single press conference? This is astounding in the history of democracy that a Prime Minister has not held a single press conference and has not answered a single question on the floor of the House. The Government says this is the mother of democracy, India is the mother of democracy. But whether it is rights groups, NGOs, the Government has been doing everything to muzzle the voices of those who speak truth to power. In the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index, India has slipped to 159th place out of 180. The Government is projecting its tenure as “Amrit Kaal” but it has rejected the United Nations multi-dimensional poverty index. The Government has its own poverty index, but experts are pointing out that the parameters of this national poverty index are different from what the international standards are. Why are the parameters of the poverty index being altered? Minimum governance, maximum publicity! The rupee is falling constantly. SMEs are shutting down. But the five trillion dollar economy drum beat is so loud that it is drowning everything else. Minimum governance, maximum publicity! During the President’s Address, plans were laid out to send the Gaganyaan Mission into space and an Indian into space. ISRO was congratulated. Excellent, wonderful! But what is the Government doing to encourage rational thinking and the scientific mentality? During Covid, the Prime Minister asked people to bang on thalis. Is this science or is this superstition? The Government talks about middle class, aspiring middle class. Suddenly, the Government has remembered the middle class. But the middle class aspirations are being ditched. Lakhs of Indians are giving up Indian citizenship. Paper leaks are destroying the future of youth. Over 70 examination papers have leaked in seven years. In 2022 alone, over two lakh renounced Indian citizenship. India lost 4,300 High-Net-Worth individuals in 2024 Sir, is this the middle class dream? No! This is minimum governance, maximum publicity. Sir, if the Government was ready to honestly admit its mistakes, if the Government was ready for an honest appraisal of its own work, it would recognize the suffering of people. But, all we have is a constant PR drumbeat. The truth is important. The truth matters. Mahatma Gandhi in ‘My Experiments With Truth’ said, ‘God is not truth. Truth is God.’ When we tell the truth, that is an act of worship. We have to always tell the truth. I started with Sukumar Rai. I will end with Sukumar Rai. In his Poem, ‘Ekushe Ain’, Sukumar Rai writes, “In an authoritarian land, those who write poetry or those who speak truth to power are imprisoned in cages and made to recite mathematical tables.” Is this ‘Amrit Kaal’, Sir? Is this the ‘Amrit Kaal’ where free speech lives in fear? Where entrepreneurs are suffocated because of impending possible raids by agencies, where the Opposition Party is always in a state of fear that the constitutional agencies will be weaponized against them. Is this Amrit Kal? Is this the Amrit Kal that the Government wants? Without open questioning, without open debate, we cannot call ourselves the Mother of Democracy. The Government says that India is the Mother of Democracy, yet the same Government cozies up to media owners and shuts down journalists. You can’t do that. You can’t become cronies with media owners and shut down the voices of the hardworking journalists. That is not democracy. That is not being the Mother of Democracy. The Government is consistently talking about raising minimum support price of Kharif and Rabi. Farm groups were protesting outside Delhi until recently because the farmers’ demands from 2020 have not yet been met. Farm groups are still protesting. They are still outside the borders of Delhi. They are still protesting. This is because their demands have not been met.Today, in 2025, more than half farm households are under a heavy loan debt. Farmer suicides have been on a rising trend since 2014. According to a NCRB Report, there were 1 lakh farmer suicides between 2014 and 2022. But, the hon. Prime Minister keeps talking about doubling farmers’ income by 2022 against a minimum governance, maximum publicity. As I said, the truth matters. We cannot become a poet like Sukumar Rai, who are imprisoned in a cage and made to recite mathematical tables, because they are not allowed to speak truth to power, because they are not allowed to speak the reality of the times, because they are not allowed to confront the Government, ask questions to the Government, and actually demand answers from the Government. The question arises that when the Government believes in minimum governance, maximum publicity, is there any place for the truth? When a Government believes in minimum governance, maximum publicity, is there any place for ‘Vaad-Vivaad’ and ‘Samvaad’? When Government believes in minimum governance and maximum publicity, what will happen then? To our great national motto, Satyamev Jayate. Thank you.

Sir, the interest rates on small savings, I believe, are at their lowest. As the small savings schemes play an important role in the economy, I would like to ask the hon. Finance Minister, through you, Sir, as to what measures the Government has taken, if at all, to increase the volume of small savings in the economy.

Mr. Chairman, Sir, I would like to request the hon. Minister to state whether it is true that, despite setting a target of 1,25,000 internships, only 10,000 internships have been provided under the PM Internship Scheme. If so, please explain why less than 10 per cent of the targeted internships have been provided and outline the Government’s plan to address this issue.

Sir, this is a very important issue that I wish to raise today because the Government recently has announced that by next year they are going to ensure 100 per cent blending of ethanol with petrol. So, they are going to get 20 per cent of ethanol into a litre of petrol. The idea behind this, the Government says, is to ensure that we meet our climate goals and we meet our emission targets. Sir, there are very simple mathematics, which has not yet been shared with the people of India that I wish to place here. The market rate of 200 ml of ethanol has been increased about five days ago. So, the new market rate is Rs.57.97 for a litre of ethanol. Twenty per cent comes to 200 ml. So, for one litre, it comes to Rs.11.5. Petrol price today is about 103 rupees. So, if I take out 20 per cent of that petrol, that will come to about 20 rupees. Now, I take away that 20 rupees worth of petrol and I substitute it with 11 rupees worth of ethanol, the price goes down by nine rupees, Sir. The question here is that you are making it mandatory to blend 20 per cent ethanol with petrol. Why is the saving from that not being passed to the average consumer? Today, people are tired of rising fuel prices. We have heard everything. India is buying cheap oil from Russia, below US $60 a barrel. Sir, since the start of Ukraine war in 2022, no relief has been given to the consumers at the fuel pumps. The prices of Petrol and Diesel are still sky high.

Thank you, Sir, for the opportunity. Sir, I come from a State which is well known for its mighty rivers. The State of Assam takes pride in the fact that we have the Brahmaputra and the Barak Rivers, whereas we often see that these rivers are associated with floods in Assam. What we fail to appreciate is that riverways is actually one of the cheapest modes for movement of goods. If we look at history of Assam, we share a huge border with Bangladesh, Myanmar etc. Our rivers are an asset through which we should be facilitating movement of goods. I feel lucky that Sarbananda Sonowalji is present in Parliament today. And, in the 16th Lok Sabha, when I represented the Constituency of Silchar, the Barak River was declared a National Waterway. And, we were all very hopeful and aspirational that once this waterway is properly made operational with proper infrastructure, a very remote and backward area like Barak Valley will be able to enhance its economy due to movements of goods in the Barak River. Unfortunately, Sir, infrastructure till today remains incomplete. The dredging of River Barak has been abandoned due to which the people of Barak Valley are almost isolated in the State of Assam. Trains become dysfunctional due to floods and landslides because we are surrounded by Dima Hasao and Karbi Anglong. Airways are beyond the affordability of common man and small traders. In these circumstances, Sir, I urge upon the Government of India to please facilitate the dredging of Barak River. Please facilitate the movement of goods through our riverways. We need ports to be made. We need proper customs infrastructure to be there so that the otherwise isolated area of Assam can grow faster, meet the aspirations of youth, boost our economy, connect us better for international trade and we can come out from the backwardness that we have been facing for decades. I thank the Government of India for starting the Brahmaputra Board which manages the Brahmaputra River. But, till today for the Barak river of Assam, we do not have a board that manages river properly. So, these are my demands in the greater interest of the people of Assam. Thank you, Sir.

Sir, it is a longpending demand of the State of West Bengal to change the name of the State to Bangla. On July 26th, 2018, the State Assembly, under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee unanimously passed a Resolution to change the name of our State from West Bengal to Bangla. All sorts of clarifications were given in this regard. Hon. Chief Minister of Bengal, Shrimati Mamata Banerjee, has time and again requested to fast-track the approval. Mamata Banerjee, in her letter to the hon. Prime Minister has categorically stated, “This rechristening will be in consonance with the history, culture and identity of our State and will reflect the aspirations of our people.” After Independence, there have been many changes in the names of many States and cities. The name ‘West Bengal’ came into existence when the province of Bengal was partitioned in 1947. The eastern part came to be known as ‘East Pakistan’ and the western part was named as ‘West Bengal’. Today, there is no East Pakistan. After the Bangladesh Liberation War, it became Bangladesh. Bengal has always been the target of autocrats, pre and post Independence as Bengal refuses to bow down. As Bengal became the nerve-centre of anti-British activities, the decision of partition of Bengal was taken by Lord Curzon in 1905. Vibrant and spontaneous protests erupted throughout Bengal led by Rabindranath Tagore himself. …The polymath penned a number of patriotic songs, which became the war cry of the anti-partition struggle. *“ My Glittering golden Bengal I love You. The ambience of your Air and Sky seems like playing a flute in my heart. The soil of Bengal, the water of Bengal, the air of Bengal, the produce of Bengal. May be Blessed, May be Blessed, May be blessed, O’ my Lord.” Sir, I will be requesting you. This is a very interesting thing that the name ‘East Bengal’ was nowhere there. The name ‘East Bengal’ appears only through a club, a 105 year old club. That club represents the never say die attitude of the Bengalis who migrated, who were forced to migrate from eastern part of Bengal. I belong to a refugee family. My father came here in 1947 when he was in Class V. As a refugee, I wear the proud badge of honour. This is the culture. Anyhow, they will be doing it. I will urge upon you, the name ‘East Bengal’ is nowhere there. Our State’s name ‘West Bengal’ needs to be changed. The mandate of the people of Bengal needs to be honoured. It is incumbent upon the Government to respect the will of the ten crore people in the State and accept the proposal of Mamata Banerjee’s Government and change the name of West Bengal to Bangla. Thank you, Sir. Jai Bangla!

“Sir, the Gangasagar Mela is one of the largest spiritual gatherings in the world, second in size only to the Kumbh Mela, yet it holds significant importance of its own. This annual fair takes place on Makar Sankranti, whereas the Kumbh Mela occurs every four years at designated locations, with one specific site hosting it every twelve years. The long history of the Gangasagar Mela is acknowledged in various historical accounts. This event is linked to the ancient trade routes of East India in the Indian Ocean, associated with Greco-Roman commerce. For Hindu devotees, the Gangasagar Mela is a vital festival of faith, imbued with deep astrological and mythological significance. Ancient Indian texts, including the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Kalidasa’s Raghuvamsa, make references to the fair, along with figures such as Kapil Muni and the island of Sagar Dwip. Every year, hundreds of thousands of devotees from across India and around the world gather to take a holy dip during this significant event. This year, more than one crore devotees visited the Ganga Sagar Mela, and this number is expected to continue rising. The State Government of West Bengal has implemented numerous initiatives to ensure comfortable travel, accommodation, and safety for all pilgrims. Remarkably, the entire cost is covered by the State Government, with no financial contribution from the Government of India. Given the uniqueness, significance, magnitude, and spiritual depth of the Ganga Sagar Mela, I urge the Central Government to grant it the status of a National Mela. If a similar incident to the Kundcenter issue had occurred at Ganga Sagar, multiple teams from the center would have already arrived in Bengal.”