By IANS
Bhubaneswar : Congress general secretary and member of parliament (MP) Rahul Gandhi, addressing a farmers rally on the concluding day of his Orissa visit, Monday said he does not foresee an early general election in the country.
Addressing the rally at Panikoili in Jajpur district, the 37-year-old leader also defended the Rs.600-billion farm loan waiver announced in the national budget, and said that it will bring smile back on the face of farmers who are the backbone of our country.
He also said the Biju Janata Dal (BJD)-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine government in Orissa has failed completely on all fronts, as the state still remains underdeveloped though it has huge natural resources, including mineral deposits.
Citing irregularities in the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, Gandhi said in Orissa he could not find a single place where the scheme is implemented “properly”.
The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was providing adequate funds to the state under various programmes, but the state government was not utilising them properly, he alleged.
Gandhi, son of Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, visited several towns and villages in Orissa during his four-day visit to the state.
Addressing many public rallies, he spoke about problems of the youth, unemployment, education, poverty and displacement of the tribals.