Deaths cos of Cong: PM

Launching a counter attack on Congress, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has alleged that the farmers were dying in Congress-ruled states.

Launching a counter attack on Congress, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has alleged that the farmers were dying in Congress-ruled states.

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Addressing an election rally in which he detailed his government's agri-initiatives, including Kisan credit cards, Kisan Bima Yojana and hike in support prices, Vajpayee said still there were allegations of farmer deaths.

"They say farmers are dying; where are the farmers dying? ...They are dying in the Congress ruled states," he said.

"Grains were there with the Centre but those who would lift them were not there. Distribution of grains is the responsibility of the state governments," he said.

While promising a second green revolution, the Prime Minister also lashed out at the Congress government in Punjab for not taking advantage of the Centre's package to bail out the sugarcane farmers.

"We had prepared a package for the sugarcane farmers of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Uttaranchal. Till today the state government has not taken the Rs 30 crore which we were giving," he said while dismissing complaints that the centre is not providing funds to the states.

"The fact is that we are providing funds but they are not taking it."

Asserting that the Centre and states have to work in tandem, Vajpayee said his government wanted to bring about the second green revolution.

In the last five years the government had increased the support prices of 25 crops by 15-40 per cent and these included wheat, rice and sugarcane.

Seeking mandate for another term, Vajpayee said the work done by his government during the last five years could be "examined and tested" by the people.

He said the government was not bothered even if the work done during his tenure was compared to that of 50 years of previous governments' rule.

Referring to the problems of drought and floods, the prime minister said immediately after independence concerns were expressed by congress leaders but no steps were taken to address these.

"Now we have decided to solve these problems by inter-linking of rivers," he said adding his government was doing what Congress could not do.