New Delhi: The government`s decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail is a "good decision" that would help to strengthen the economy, said Congress MP from Rohtak Deepender Singh Hooda.
Speaking in favour of the economic move in the Lok Sabha debate, Deepender Singh Hooda said that FDI in retail would not harm small traders or farmers.
He said big brands like Bharti-Wal-Mart and Reliance Fresh were running side by side with small kirana stores in his state of Haryana. "The government has taken safeguards to ensure that small shopkeepers` interests are not harmed," he added.
The son of Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the economic move was also beneficial for farmers. "I come from a farmer`s family, I know. It is good for farmers," he said.
The junior Hooda also trashed the opposition`s claim that big names like McDonald`s and Pepsico were sourcing potatoes for their french fries from the US.
He said in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Gujarat, McDonald`s sources its potatoes from farmers in the state.
"I will show you large potato, 12 to 24 inches, that our farmers grow, which are sourced by McDonald`s and Pepsico. When these potatoes arrive by bagfuls, then the BJP says it has come from the US," the Congress MP said.
BJP leader Sushma Swaraj had earlier said in the house Tuesday that foreign brands import their potatoes from the US.
IANS
