Rosaiah hails PM for steering UPA's four years in office

Hyderabad, May 23 (UNI) Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K Rosaiah today hailed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for running a coalition government finding solutions to various issues and overcoming hurdles.

Mr Rosaiah told reporters here that UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi had given a direction to the government and put the country on the path of progress.

Dr Singh has been running the government with a clean image, without creating any major controversy, he said.

He had not gone ahead with the signing of the Indo-US nuclear deal, respecting the sentiments of the Left parties on the issue, Mr Rosaiah added.

During the UPA rule, the country had emerged as the fastest growing economy after China, he said, adding exports had increased to 155 billion USD in 2007-08 from a mere 63 billion USD in 2004-05.

As many as 1.36 crore new jobs had been created in the country, he pointed out.

Describing as ''wonderful'' the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme that provide jobs to rural landless poor, he said Andhra Pradesh had benefitted by the launch of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Renewal Mission.

Hailing the Centre for announcing a Rs 60,000 crore loan waiver package for peasants, he said Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy had taken up with the Centre the question of providing compensation to those farmers who had promptly repaid their debts.

It was the UPA Government, which had introduced the Women's Reservation Bill in the Rajya Sabha, he recalled and exhorted all parties to support the bill and ensure its passage in the next Parliament session.

The Right to Information Act, enacted during the UPA regime, was another feather in the cap of Dr Singh, who had taken along the Chief Ministers of even non-Congress ruled states at the National Development Council, he said.

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