NEW DELHI: Concerned over the rising rate of inflation and increasing prices of essential commodities, the Congress has planned to take up the issue for discussion in its parliamentary forum during the early part of the Budget session.

Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) sources said here that ahead of the CPP, that usually holds its general body meeting at the start of the session, the executive was likely to hold an in-depth discussion on the issue that has become a talking point even in the Assembly polls.

While parties in the opposition, be it Punjab or Uttarakhand, have made the price rise an election issue, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday flagged off a campaign in the Capital highlighting the steep increase in the price of products ranging from food items to cement and bricks.

The sources said with the Budget session of Parliament scheduled to start on February 23, the focus would be on gearing up both for facing the attack as well as taking stock of the efficacy of steps undertaken by the Government.

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram held two rounds of discussions with party members during the winter session where several suggestions for Budget-2007 were made.

It is nearly a year since the Congress voiced its concern over the rising prices and the Congress Working Committee took note of the development and urged the Government to take remedial steps. Later the party held a meeting of the Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled States where several suggestions, including re-introduction of measures to check stock holdings, were made.

The Left parties have been demanding a ban on forward trading and strengthening public distribution system to bring down the prices. Last week, during a meeting Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the Communist Party of India delegation comprising its general secretary A.B. Bardhan and D. Raja mentioned the need for the Government to reduce prices. On Monday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told Mr. Raja that several steps had already been taken to mend the situation, which would also ease after the harvest.

``Worrisome''

PTI reports:

Union Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh on Tuesday said that measures taken to contain the spiralling price rise have not yielded the desired results and the situation has become "worrisome."

Describing the price rise as a "burning topic" in the country Mr. Singh, who belongs to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) constituent Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), told reporters here that it was the "only minus point" of the UPA regime.

He said steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India, Planning Commission, Food and other ministries had "failed" to yield the desired results.

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