NCP to contest Assembly polls in Punjab, Uttaranchal, Manipur

Puducherry, Feb 1 (UNI) The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will contest 15 seats in Punjab, 20 in Uttaranchal and 40 in Manipur in the coming assembly elections, Party National General Secretary Peethbaran Master said today.

Claiming that the NCP was emerging as one of the strongest parties in the country, he told newspersons here that the NCP, formed in 1999, was the only party to be recognised by the Election Commission as a national party in a short span of time.

The NCP was ready to join hands with all secular forces, including the Congress, to prevent the BJP and its allies from coming to power, he said.

He said party-founder leader and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar had taken effective steps to reduce the rate of interest on farm loans to provide relief to debt-ridden farmers.

As several agriculturists and farm labourers were coming forward to join the NCP in Puducherry, some important political decisions would be taken at the state committee meeting here which would be held later in the day, he said, adding measures to improve the condition of agriculturists and address the unemployment problem would be discussed in the meeting.

On the Singur issue, Mr Master said the interests of the farmers should be protected as agriculture was the main source of revenue in the country.

NCP Tamil Nadu president G P Sarathi said a joint efforts were being unedertaken for the development of the party in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

He demanded the setting up of a Welfare Board for agricultural labourers, provision of employment on the basis of seniority in the employment exchange, establishment of a Public Service Commission (PSC) and unemployment dole of Rs 1,000 per month to the educated unemployed youths in Puducherry.

UNI