By TCN News,
New Delhi: Welfare Party of India has supported Union Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moilys’s suggestion to import oil from Iran. The Petroleum Minister in his letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P.Chidambaram had clarified that by enacting his proposal, by which India might import oil from Iran by payment in Indian currency would save the nation 8.5 billion dollar.
Welfare Party general secretary Dr. S.Q.R. Ilyas in a statement said this would not only boost the sliding national currency vis-à-vis dollar but also will strengthen the Indo-Iran bilateral relations under severe stress due to US compulsions and diktats. Moreover this would give relief to the common man from frequent hike of fuel prices.
As per reports, 52% of our dollar requirements go to oil imports. India had imported 13 million tons of oil from Iran in last fiscal year. If the same amount of oil is imported this year from Iran by paying Indian rupees instead of dollar, the Indian exchequer could save 8.5 billion dollar. Dr. Ilyas in his statement wondered, if within one year we can save this much huge amount in dollar, how much precious money we have wasted during the last years only to appease White House masters, who imposed sanction against Iran.
Party general secretary in his statement urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to ratify the Veerappa Moily proposal at the earliest as the principal opposition BJP and the left parties have already extended their support to it. Welfare party reminded the Prime Minister that as per market economy principles, India had the right to import oil from anywhere at its benefit and this right should never be conceded to any power.
Mr. Ilyas also held the Prime Minister and his UPA government responsible for incurring heavy fiscal loss to the country by withdrawing from the India-Iran Pakistan gas pipe line project which would have otherwise brought heavy gain for the country.