BJP slams Planning Commission for costly toilet renovation

New Delhi, Jun 6: The

on Wednesday hit out at the Planning Commission, saying the body headed by the

has spent Rs 35 lakh on renovating two toilets at a time when the government is emphasising on austerity. "The Planning Commission says those earning above Rs 32 per day are rich. And it has gone ahead and spent Rs 35 lakh on two toilets. The Prime Minister heads the Planning Commission which is today filled with people who have only read about poverty in textbooks," BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said.

BJP wanted to know what happened to all the announcements made by the government to its ministers to engage in cost-cutting and austerity drive as the GDP growth has hit a nine-year low of 5.3 per cent. "In a country where farmers are committing suicides due to debts, such wasteful expenditure should stop," Hussain said.

The BJP has been targeting the government on various key issues like price rise, hike in petrol prices and corruption. It had also criticised the Planning Commission for stating that those having a daily income of Rs 32 and above in urban areas and Rs 28 and above in rural areas would be qualified as living above the poverty line.

PTI