'Petrol, diesel price hike not to affect poor'

Udaipur (South Tripura), Feb 19: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today asserted that the Union government is working for the backward and poor people, hence the price of kerosene was not hiked this time.

''My Government is fully seized of the task of controlling price rise of essentials and the price of petrol and diesel was hiked. But that of kerosene was not only because of the pro-people attitude of the UPA,'' he said while addressing an election rally of the Congress for the February 23 Assembly polls. Even though the Left parties had been continuously demanding roll back of petrol and diesel prices, Dr Singh said his government was committed to checking the price rise.

''The price of petrol and diesel is resolved internationally and the poor would not be affected directly,'' he promised.

He made it clear that the Congress-led UPA government was running in accordance with the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) and 80 per cent of the pledges made in the Congress manifesto had been incorporated in the CMP.

UNI