Government making sanitisers for the rich using poor man's rice: Rahul

Taking a dig at the Centre's decision to convert surplus rice stocks into ethanol which will be used for alcohol-based hand sanitisers, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, "After all, when will India's poor wake up? You are dying of hunger and they are busy cleaning the hands of the rich by making sanitisers from your portion of rice."

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday took a jibe at the Central government over reports that rice would be used to make sanitisers and asked the poor of the country as to when they are going to wake up.

He said while the poor are dying of hunger, the government was allowing rice to be used for making sanitisers.

"After all, when will India's poor wake up? You are dying of hunger and they are busy cleaning the hands of the rich by making sanitisers from your portion of rice," he said in a tweet in Hindi.

He attached a news report about the government's decision to allow use of surplus rice for manufacturing sanitisers in the country.

The government on Monday approved that surplus rice available with Food Corporation of India (FCI) can be converted into ethanol to manufacture alcohol-based hand sanitisers and also for blending with petrol.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the National Biofuel Coordination Committee (NBCC).

PTI