Price Rise: Sonia consults Gen Secys on eve of CMs Meet

New Delhi, July 4 (UNI) A day before the meeting of the Chief Ministers of 14 Congress-ruled States tomorrow to discuss the spiralling prices, congress president Sonia Gandhi today held consultations with the AICC General Secretaries at her residence here.

According to party sources, Mrs Gandhi sought feedback from the General Secretaries in charge of the various states on the situation prevailing there on the price front.

In the run up to the Chief Ministers' Meeting tomorrow, she acquainted herself with the facts relating to measures presently being taken in the congressr-ruled states to control the price rise.

She sought their advice on what more steps the States could take to ensure that the people did not feel the pinch of the rising prices of essential commodities.

The General Secretaries,according to the sources, suggested to her that the Congress-ruled States could be directed to invoke the Essential Services Maintenance Act(ESMA)to deal effectively with hoarders and black marketeers.

Tomorrow's meeting of Congress Chief Ministers will begin at 1000 hrs at 10 Janpath, the official residence of the Congress president.

Mrs Gandhi is likely to set the trend for the discussion at the meeting with her opening remarks followed by Prime Minister's remarks. Finance Minister P Chidambaram will also speak at the meet.

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