The Indian government should give priority to ?putting food on plates? of millions who go hungry every day, actress-activist Shabana Azmi said, lamenting that the country’s ?economy is booming but not for the poorest?.
Azmi was taking part in a protest organised by the ActionAid HungerFree outside the UN headquarters to highlight the plight of the world’s poor as global leaders were addressing the United Nations General Assembly.
Protesters beat drums, shouted slogans and waved flags to press the world leaders to ?put the interests of the people above those of corporations and businesses?.
Azmi said the government policies need to correct the contradiction in the Indian society. On one hand, the country has a booming middle class and a 9 per cent growth rate and on the other, it has the highest rate of malnourishment among the people. More than 100 million people, mostly children, go hungry every day, she said.
“India’s economy is booming but not for the poorest,” Azmi said.
World over, there are 854 million hungry people, 54 million more than when the world leaders pledged to half the hunger in 2000, she told the protesters.
Azmi said progress requires huge infrastructure, the construction of which displaces thousands of poor. That brings out the need for putting in place social security measures.
Joining Hollywood star Tim Meadows and Hilda Dokubo, a Nigerian actress, Azmi demanded that women be given right to land, principle of social justice followed to the letter and corporate abuse eradicated.