I am not constrained by Sonia: Manmohan

London, Apr 1 (PTI) Dismissing Opposition claims that he
is constrained by Sonia Gandhi, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh has said the Congress chief has carried the "heavy
burden" of looking after the party enabling him to concentrate
on managing the government.

"I am not constrained by the fact that the Congress
party's management is looked after by Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi," he
told Financial Times when asked to comment on right-wing
Bharatiya Janata Party claims that he was constrained by
Gandhi.

Singh said that this allowed him to concentrate on
managing the "world of the government."

"It is a distinct advantage the fact that the Congress
president has carried this heavy burden of managing the party
and bringing various political parties together in the United
Progressive Alliance is a positive element. It's not a
constraint on me," he told in an interview.

Asked what was his government's top achievement in the
last five years, Singh said the "UPA had been able to increase
the trajectory of India's economic growth rate to a new high
of close to 9.0 per cent while at the same time ensuring that
our growth process is more socially and regionally inclusive."

"Inclusive Growth has been our watchword and that is
what we are delivering. We have increased the income of our
farming community by ensuring they get better prices," he
said.

The Prime Minister said the Government has increased
employment in urban and rural areas, and created the
first ever rural employment guarantee programme in the world.

"This is a safety net that will smoothen the harsh
edges of extreme poverty across the country. There has been
unprecedented capacity expansion in education," he said.

Singh pointed out that the government had taken
important initiatives in the area of foreign policy, including
the Indo-US nuclear deal that ended India's nuclear apartheid.

"I think overall we have much to show both at home and
abroad to say that India is a better place and a better nation
today than five years ago," he said and added that "a lot was
still to be done to remove poverty, ignorance and disease."

Stating that caste politics was an unfortunate fact of
life in India, Singh said that the only way to overcome this
was to show that non-caste parties delivered substantial
results for those who belong to disadvantaged castes.

"That is what we are trying to do," he added. PTI