New Delhi, 23 April (H.S.): Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has launched a sharp attack on the Modi‑led central government, accusing it of systemic failure in securing India’s fuel and food‑security interests. In a statement issued on the social‑media platform X, he alleged that the government is using the contentious delimitation exercise as a political diversion to sidestep growing public concern over its energy and agricultural policy shortfalls, adding that the public “has seen through this spectacle.”

Kharge cited what he called alarming declines in India’s domestic energy output, asserting that crude‑oil production has contracted for the 11th consecutive year, with an overall drop of roughly 22 percent between 2014–15 and the present. Gas production, he claimed, has fallen by nearly 40 percent over the same period.

As a result, he alleged, LPG connections have been shut down or are being run down, leaving rural households vulnerable to long booking queues, supply delays, and the thriving of black‑market cylinder trade.

The Congress chief also linked the fuel‑supply crisis to India’s exposure in the Strait of Hormuz, where he said Indian‑flagged vessels are not being adequately protected and are facing disrupted navigation. According to him, 14 Indian ships have been effectively stranded in the strait for 54 days, throwing a spotlight on what he termed the government’s failure to secure dependable sea‑lanes for India’s essential energy imports.

On the food‑security front, Kharge focused on fertiliser shortages, stating that fertiliser production in March 2026 hit a five‑year low, with output down by 24.6 percent year‑on‑year. He blamed external shocks—such as China’s July 2025 ban on certain specialty fertilisers and Russia’s halt to exports—but argued that the Modi government has taken no meaningful steps toward diversifying import sources or strengthening domestic fertiliser capacity. This, he said, has left farmers grappling with persistent shortages, a direct consequence of official complacency and policy inaction.

Kharge concluded that the combined crisis in fuel and fertilisers points to deeper structural failures in economic management, warning that unless the government alters course, India’s energy dependence and agricultural vulnerability will continue to grow, with serious implications for inflation, rural livelihoods and overall macroeconomic stability.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar