No formal celebration to mark 3rd ann of UPA govt

New Delhi, May 17: The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh completes three years in office on May 22 amid indications that there is going to be no formal celebration this time to mark the occasion.

"Unlike the first two anniversaries of the government, it is going to be a low key affair this time," a top Congress leader said, but refused to say why there was no plan for a formal celebration of the third anniversary.

All the ministers presented a report card before Prime Minister Singh at the completion of the second year in office, highlighting the achievements of respective ministries and their future plans.

"No such exercise has been planned for this anniversary," a Cabinet minister confided today.

However, Dr Singh will host a dinner for UPA partners at his residence, as he did last year, on May 22.

The subdued mood of the government is possibly due to the poor show of the Congress, the leader of the multi-party ruling coalition, in the just-concluded Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

The ruling UPA has also been at the receiving end over price rise, which is cited as the main reason for the poll debacle of the Congress in the Uttarakhand and Punjab assembly elections early this year.

Notwithstanding their crucial outside support, the Left parties have been after the government for their failure to contain price rise.

The "slackening" pace in the implementation of the Common Minimum Programme (CMP), which forms the basis for cooperation between the UPA partners and the Left parties, has been a major complaint against the government.

The UPA insiders say that the controversy surrounding the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) policy has affected the image of the government as the saviour of "aam aadmi." Congress President Sonia Gandhi yesterday reminded her party's MPs that the government had only two more years to complete its current term and asked them to consolidate the achievements in the past three years.

Listing the Government's achievements, she said, "Our Government has achieved a great deal, whether through the introduction of new development schemes, the enactment of new laws, the strengthening of our secular fabric, the making of a transparent administration, the acceleration of economic growth and the launch of new programmes and initiatives, for the welfare of farmers, the weaker sections of society and the minorities.

Ms Gandhi told the General Body meeting of the Congress Parliametary Party (CPP) yesterday that the Government had taken steps to control the prices of essential commodities "and while these are having some impact, we must maintain the closest vigil on them."

UNI