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| India-Pakistan |
| Muslim women should produce many children. Government will pay them. |
| 2007-01-07 |
| UP family planning minister asks Muslim women to produce as many healthy kids as they want, says Mulayam govt will pay Rs 1,400 per child Lucknow, India - January 6: In a statement that shocked even officials of the state Health Department, Ahmad Hasan, the family planning minister of Uttar Pradesh, today announced that Muslim women can produce as many healthy children as they want, and that the state government would give Rs 1,400 to take care of each child. Hasan made the statement while addressing a gathering today, after a Pulse Polio awareness rally was taken out by Muslim women in the Old City on eve of the next phase of Pulse polio drive, starting on Sunday. The support extended by the minister, though, had one condition: “You (Muslim women) can produce as many healthy children as you can afford and I am there to support you. But do come out and support us in need (read upcoming state Assembly elections). We will make all your dreams come true in the next five years.” Hasan said the Congress government had advocated the two-child policy but the Samajwadi Party government would help them in all possible way to have more children. “Congress ki sarkar ne do bachhon ke bad rok laga di thhi, par hum samajhte hain ki yeh apka faisla hai (Congress government had put the two-child norm in place but we feel it’s your decision to put a cap on your family),” Hasan said. “So, you can produce as many healthy children as you want.” Though the statement shocked and surprised even the women at the gathering, they applauded the minister the moment he announced that the government would give Rs 1,400 for every child. Hasan also put the onus of the increasing number of polio cases in the state on the Centre and said the state health Department could not pursue the Pulse Polio programme as it desired due to the Centre’s negligence. Meanwhile, making evident that the Assembly polls are round the corner, Hasan went on with his announcements: “You give us land on rent of Rs 5,000 and we will give you hospital wherever you want. You select the doctors, we will appoint them at Rs 10,000.” Interestingly, while Hasan and the Health officials claimed a good response, Newsline found that the younger lot of women with children was lured to the rally with promises of money, while the elder ones were told that they would get pension. Many women from different localities of the Old City confirmed the fact, though Health Department officials refuted these charges. “There was an announcement in our area that we will be paid money if we come here, and that’s why I am here with my one-year-old daughter. I also called other women from the locality,” said Shanno of Chowk area. Asked about the polio drop, she said her daughter, Sheher, was not administered the drop. The elderly women, meanwhile, could be seen with ration cards in hand. “We were told that they would give us pension if we participated in the rally,” said Munnavar Jahan, from Kashmiri Mohalla in the Old City. But Dr S K Srivastava, director general, Medical and Health, said: “No such bait was given, neither did we make any promises. They have all come here willingly,” Meanwhile, the Health officials present at the meeting preferred to not comment on the minister’s statement about childbirth. |
| Posted by:john |
| #8 We do the same thing here - its called Welfare - the more kids you have the more the government will give you. So why not have 6-8 kids which you can neither support or care for? |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2007-01-07 22:32 |
| #7 "$31.59" - enuff for one US tween/Teen's Friday night binging at McDonalds or the Arcade. And now you know why Russia-China = Iran > MANY WOMEN ARE REFUSING TO HAVE CHILDREN NO MATTER WHAT THE GUBMINT SAYS NOR HOW MANY AK-47'S ARE POINTED AT THEIR HEAD. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2007-01-07 22:00 |
| #6 Hey what's the conversion rate of Rs 1,400 to American dollars? $31.59 |
| Posted by: Chuck Darwin 2007-01-07 21:26 |
| #5 Hey what's the conversion rate of Rs 1,400 to american dollars? We kinda do the same thing here. Illegals having lots of babies with our paying for all of the hospital costs and until they're 18 years old, parents included to take care of said children. |
| Posted by: Jan from work 2007-01-07 14:41 |
| #4 What they really need are spay & neuter clinics, just like for any other animals you have too many of. |
| Posted by: Jackal 2007-01-07 08:50 |
| #3 Don't be silly, Muslims are except from all criticism on the grounds of "over-population", "over-consumption" and "climate change" just as they are exempt from criticism concerning women's rights, the judicial and extra-judicial murder of gay men, minorities, people who face Mecca the wrong way, etc. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2007-01-07 08:44 |
| #2 It's already being done. Why would the Indians want to compete with the Euros? |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-01-07 08:11 |
| #1 Memo to Mr Ahmad Hasan: the job of an Indian state family planning minister to to encourage people to limit their family size... |
| Posted by: john 2007-01-07 06:43 |