Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday assured that India has sufficient stocks of petrol, diesel and cooking gas to handle any crisis amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, and urged people not to pay heed to rumours about shortages.
Singh arrived in Lucknow, his Lok Sabha constituency, for a three-day visit to Uttar Pradesh on Saturday.
Speaking at an event in Gomti Nagar, Singh said, “Right now, the crisis in West Asia has created many challenges. Though formal talk of a ceasefire is underway, looking at ground realities, it would not be proper to assume the crisis is fully over.”
“When tension rose in West Asia, our PM formed a committee under my chairmanship. Its job is to strengthen government efforts to deal with the adverse effects of the West Asia crisis,” Singh said.
Ruling out any kind of energy crisis in the country due to the war, he said, “We have petrol, diesel, cooking gas – all available and we have adequate reserves. The government is continuously ensuring that no crisis arises even after two-three months.”
“No country is untouched by what is happening in West Asia. Even America is not untouched; serious crises are arising in America too. Despite all challenges, India has accepted those challenges and we have largely succeeded in overcoming them. For a short time, there may be a small shortage of something, I cannot deny that truth. But I think this is a global crisis,” he said.
He requested all “not to pay attention” to any rumours. “I assure you, no big crisis will arise in this country while our government is here. When a mega-crisis like Covid came, we faced it. So we are fully ready to face whatever is going on in West Asia,” he said.
He added that the “World Bank has said India is capable of handling any energy crisis.”
Highlighting the country’s economic resilience, Singh said, “The world is going through a global crisis, but even in this period, India is the fastest-growing economy. This is a matter of pride for us.”
“There was a time when Uttar Pradesh was a hub of the mafia, but today it has become a hub of seers. Uttar Pradesh was once called a ‘BIMARU’ state, but now wherever you go, people say that to a large extent it has become an ‘Uttam Pradesh’ (developed state),” Singh said, praising chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
Singh also said that BrahMos missile production has started in Lucknow, and the first batch has been handed over to the armed forces. He added that several ancillary units related to defence equipment are expected to be set up with support from the state government.
