Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday said the Narendra Modi government does not give a financial package to states for natural disasters and even MGNREGA funds are stuck, but it can squander precious resources on setting up selfie points across the country.

Responding to the revelation that each 3D Modi selfie point installed at a ‘C’ category railway station costs Rs 6.25 lakh, the Congress president said: “Self-obsessed promotion by Modi Government knows NO bounds! Absolutely brazen waste of taxpayers’ money by installing Modi’s 3D selfie points at Railway Stations. Modi Government hasn’t provided drought and flood relief to states. MGNREGA funds for opposition ruled states are also pending. But it has the audacity to generously splurge public money on these cheap election stunts!”

An RTI reply by Central Railway has revealed that a temporary installation costs Rs 1.25 lakh, and a permanent selfie point of Modi costs Rs 6.25 lakh.

Kharge recalled how orders were issued earlier by the ministry of defence to set up selfie points with the Prime Minister’s cutouts. “Earlier, the blood and sacrifice of our brave soldiers was politically used by ordering the Armed Forces to install 822 such Selfie-points with a prominent cut-out of Modi ji,” he said.

The University Grants Commission had also issued directives for similar selfie points in educational institutions.

Modi’s photographs have been displayed almost everywhere — at railway platforms and bus stations, petrol pumps and highways, in newspapers and on television channels — for the last 10 years. Overriding Opposition criticism for using institutions, public sector units and even soldiers for his publicity, Modi has now deployed the entire government machinery to push his “Viksit Bharat” campaign.

Government departments have been issuing designs and themes for the selfie-points.

At one major railway station, around 20 selfie-points were supposed to be set up using 3D fibre sculptures, acrylic boards and in-built lighting, on themes such as Chandrayaan, tap water, rural electrification, gas connections and the Covid fight.

Kharge said on Monday: “The most important issue is unemployment. The rate of unemployment in the age group of 15 and 29 years is 10%. Rural unemployment is 8.3% and urban 13.8%. The country’s youth is asking: where are the promised two crore jobs every year? Why has the journey from examination to recruitment become so complex? Why was the future of youth destroyed by destroying the MSME sector?”

The Congress has also been flagging the rising debt under Modi. A few days ago, spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said: “International Monetary Fund has warned India that India’s debt will be bigger than the GDP. In 2014, total debt – Rs 54 lakh crore. Debt in 2023 – Rs 205 crore. In 67 years after Independence, 14 Prime Ministers took a debt of Rs 55 lakh crore but Modi alone raised a debt of Rs 150 lakh crore.”