Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday slammed the government over media reports that India lost Rs 406 crore worth grains due to damage during storage in state-run granaries in the last three years, saying "wasting food is equivalent to stealing from the poor".

In a post on Instagram, the former Congress chief shared a screen shot of a media report which stated that data cited in a parliamentary standing committee report has revealed that India lost Rs 406 crore worth of grains procured by the government due to damage during storage in state-run granaries in the past three years.

"Wasting food is equivalent to stealing from the poor," Gandhi said in his post, using the hashtag 'GOIwastes'.

In a report, the Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution stated that the government should ensure that food grains do not get damaged/spoiled by taking adequate scientific storage measures and fixing responsibilities on officials/officers for accrual of damaged food grains.