Speeches in the State Legislatures : 1946-72

Further, the necessary result of decontrol, apart from other considerations, would be the retrenchment of the staff employed in the Civil Supplies Department. Now, I know that if for financial reasons the Government effect any retrenchment in the staff, these very hon. Members will make a grievance of it. May I get an assurance from the hon. Members opposite that if ever decontrol comes in and retrenchment of the staff employed in the Civil Supplies Department follows, they will not lead a deputation to the Government on behalf of the unemployed persons? It is a very unfair attitude to try to hit at the Government for anything and everything.

I think that what the hon. Member Shri Purohit said was all right. He said that the ever increasing number of eating mouths was larger than the number of producing acres and that we shall have to think seriously of birth control. The State Government cannot undertake any programme of birth control, but I may say that this is a programme which the social workers can undertake. Then, as regards a certain grievance which was made by the hon. Member Shri Ambli, I may say that he is very much misinformed about the matter. He said that there was a difference of Rs 9 per maund in the procurement price and the selling price of jowar in his district. I may tell him that his information is quite wrong. The actual purchase price is Rs 9-1-0 per Bengal maund and if, as he says, the difference between the procurement price and the selling price is Rs 9 per maund, it would mean that the selling price is 100 per cent more than the procurement price, which is not a fact. If it is a fact, it will be a sort of condemnation of this Government. But it is not a fact and I wish the hon. Member had not made such a sweeping statement based on wrong information.

Then one of the hon. Friends opposite said that in many cases even a 12 oz. ration was not being issued. This is absolutely wrong. I  have not received any such complaint and I can assure the House that a ration quantum of 12 oz. has been maintained throughout the State so far and it will be maintained also in the days to come.

Sir, I have said what I had to say about the food policy of this Government. We will certainly consider all the arguments that were made in this House on this question in the month of November next when possibly we will be able to re-examine the whole question.

I believe the hon. Member will withdraw his resolution in view of the explanation given by me.