Report

Sonia Gandhi, CMP Council Chairperson

NEW DELHI: The Congress president, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, has been appointed chairperson of the National Advisory Council to implement the Common Minimum Programme of the United Progressive Alliance.

Smt. Gandhi will hold the rank of a Cabinet Minister. A notification to this effect was issued by the Union Government on 4 June. Smt. Gandhi will have an independent office. To monitor the implementation of CMP, Smt. Sonia Gandhi will head a 20-member body called the National Advisory Council. The council members will represent the UPA constituents and are to be nominated by the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh

The Cine Star Shahrukh Khan called on Smt. Sonia Gandhi to invite her for the special screening of his latest film. Also seen are Shri Rajeev Shukla, M.P.

Young MPs Have a New Vision of India

NEW DELHI: Young Members of Parliament (MPs) on June 10 vowed to raise their collective voice to fight corruption, bridge the widening gap between urban and rural economies and support the cause of industry and business to create a new corporate India.

The young parliamentarians, who included Shri Sachin Pilot, Shri Milind Deora, Shri Naveen Jindal, Shri Sandeep Dikshit and Shri Anantakumar Hedge, expressed their sentiment at a meeting on ‘The Vision of India’ organized by the Associated chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) here.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Jindal, who himself is one of India’s leading industrialists, said his efforts in each debate in Parliament would be to expose corruption that had become rampant in government institutions. Highlighting the plight of people living below the poverty line, Shri Sachin Pilot said he would work for bridging the increasing gap between the urban and rural economies. "We will try to shrink the rich and poor divide and also work towards building a new corporate India." Shri Dikshit said it was a misconception that poverty could be eradicated only through technological advancement.

Shri Deora said corporate India had to play a significant role as a partner to remove rural backwardness. He emphasized that public and private partnership was essential to uplift the fiscal and economic growth of India. Similarly, Shri Hegde felt that India needed to follow the path between capitalism and communism to take the country forward on the economic front.