NEW DELHI // In a country grappling with poverty, sluggish growth and a daunting deficit, India’s new budget has set aside 2 billion rupees (Dh122 billion) for a colossal iron-and-bronze statue almost twice the size of the Statue of Liberty.
The plans for a 182-metre-tall replica of the Indian independence leader Vallabhbhai Patel caused an outcry, with many people saying the country has far more urgent priorities.
“How can they waste money on statue like that?” asked Rohtash, a vegetable vendor in the Indian capital who goes by one name. “The government could have used that money to reduce the price of rice. That would have been some help for poor people like us.” Others lamented how the budget earmarks more money for the Patel statue than for women’s safety nationwide, which got 1.5 billion rupees, or the education of young girls at 1 billion rupees.
The move was criticized strongly on social media, with one sarcastic Twitter user saying: “Truly #budget2014 has something for everyone, even Sardar Patel.” The move was rated “most disliked” on the website of NDTV news channel, and the Times of India newspaper started a Twitter poll asking if the statue was “wasteful expenditure”.
* Associated Press
