An uncommon man's "common" choice

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy is by no means a “common” man.
But then, he started eating “common rice” since Sunday only to drive home the point that the rice that comes at a cheaper price need not be cheap or sub-standard.
“Since Sunday, I have been eating rice cooked out of the common variety of rice. I found it quite OK. I have instructed my family people that from now onwards we shall use this common variety of rice. I was told it costs only Rs 15.50 a kg. However, there is another variety of the same rice which costs only Rs 14.50 per kilo. I want to try that now. I don’t think there is any much difference between the two varieties of rice,” the Chief Minister remarked at a high-level review meeting on prices of essential commodities.
“Superfine rice,” as it is called, is a most-preferred variety in Andhra Pradesh and obviously it’s commanding a price of over Rs 35 a kg, what with the spurt in demand. Though the Rajasekhara Reddy government repeatedly promised over the last one-and-a-half years to ensure that superfine rice is sold at Rs 20 a kg, it never really happened as the price rose sharply every month from Rs 24 to Rs 35 a kg, causing uproar from the public. The Sortex variety, which is more polished, is being sold at Rs 39 to Rs 42 per kilo in most super markets.
As the superfine rice is being smuggled out of Andhra Pradesh into neighbouring Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, there is an obvious scarcity of the commodity in the local market, causing the price to spiral. The Chief Minister himself told the state Assembly that superfine rice and other essential commodities were being smuggled out of the state since “the prices here are comparatively less.”
With the efforts to check price rise failing to yield desired results, the Chief Minister probably thought of propagating the use of the so-called cheaper varieties so that demand for superfine rice could be brought down.
“The Chief Minister himself is trying to set an example by eating the common variety of rice which is widely available in the market for a very less price,” one of his aides pointed out.
Now, Rajasekhara Reddy would like his Cabinet colleagues as well to eat common rice.
Besides rice, the Chief Minister has included Raagi Sankati, a staple diet of people of Rayalaseema region, in his food menu to highlight its nutritional value.
A doctor himself, Rajasekhara Reddy also has other alternatives like Gutti Vankaaya (stuffed brinjal) and Bengal gram that cost much less than other vegetables and tur dal respectively. “People should use different pulses instead of tur dal, a staple diet of the Telugus, for a balanced diet. That’s good for health,” the Chief Minister pointed out.