PM Asks States to Handle Short Supplies, Pledges Assistance

Amid criticism for inflation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked states to handle deficient supplies of essential commodities and pledged that the Centre will provide all possible assistance, said media reports.

“It will never be possible to insulate ourselves from the pulls and pressures of international demand and supply. The State Governments must forge appropriate strategies to bolster food production and tackle shortages of essential supplies,” he was quoted as saying.

Singh made the statement while addressing the first annual conference of the Chief Secretaries.

The prime minister said that the Centre is committed to assist states in every possible way, said reports.

Speaking plainly about news challenges facing the administrators, Singh said that people today resent ‘apathy, sloth and corruption in any form and at any level of government more than ever before’, said reports.

According to Singh, expectations of people from government rising more and more make them impatient with the pace at which results were delivered, said reports.

“Governance today has become extremely complex… There is clamour for accountability from all quarters – the legislature, the judiciary and the media,” he said.

He said that the experience in the last two years brought to the fore the significant of the food security and the need for containing prices, said reports.

“For some time past, there was a false sense of security that availability of food has ceased to be a concern. Similarly, many felt that we have been able to control prices,” he was quoted as saying.

He said that growing population and higher levels of living necessitated augmentation of food supplies, said reports.

(Based on internet reports.)