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Lucknow, July 9: UP agriculture minister Surya Pratap Shahi on Tuesday found himself in an unwanted situation for a brief while after he said during a press conference that dal, a key ingredient in Indian cuisine, was available for Rs 100. As soon as the minister said this, the reporters in the press conference rose almost in unison and tried correcting the minister informing him how dal was available for anywhere Rs 180-200.
However, rather than accepting that he goofed up, the minister was seen with a wide grin on his face, which did not go down well with the people.
After the video of the incident went viral on social media platform, the video was widely commented upon as netizens put light on the irony that the state agriculture minister in UP was unaware about the prices of pulses and important commodities. That he further kept smiling, almost laughing post the goof up, only added dal (salt) to injury.
The minister himself shared pictures from the event where he failed to state the correct price of dal.
"Today held a press conference with the Honorable Minister of State for Agriculture, Shri Baldev Singh Aulakh, at Lok Bhavan, Lucknow, regarding strategies for the development of natural farming in the state," said the minister in the post shared by him on X.
Though not a blunder of 'Himalayan' proportions, the minister's ignorance was surely an act that is bound not to be forgotten (if not forgiven) anytime soon. This incident was only a reminder how several politicians and ministers are far removed from the ground realities of the people they represent. Though one must fall short of generalising or making a blanket observation, the harsh reality is that those in power seem to be oblivious to the struggles of the common janta.
