New Delhi:
The Prime Minister has said he is considering reshuffling his Cabinet before the next Parliament session starts on November 7. The PM added he would like to reduce the average age of his cabinet.
On the recent differences expressed publicly between senior members of the Congress, the PM said he is not aware of any disconnect between the Congress party and the government.
He also said that expressing different points of view is not "necessarily a bad thing." He added, "I can't say I will shut up every colleague." However, it was necessary for the Cabinet and the government to function with a "certain degree of cohesion" and Dr Singh said his Cabinet had functioned with a "much greater degree of cohesion" than even the first Cabinet headed by Jawaharlal Nehru.
Home Minister P Chidambaram, who has been targeted by senior Congress members including Digvijaya Singh and Janardhan Dwivedi over his saffron terror remarks, got a vote of confidence from the PM. He "is doing an exceedingly good job and "he has my full confidence and support", Dr Singh said.
The PM has also said the Supreme Court should not get into the realm of policy formulation. His comment was made in the context of the Supreme Court's order that excess grain should be given away to poor families.
A series of reports, including some by NDTV, showed grain rotting in the open because the government has run out of warehouses for storage.
A furious Supreme Court said instead of wasting the grain, the government should give it away. The PM has said that an estimated 37 per cent of the population lives below poverty line. How can free food be given to such a large number of people, he asked.