PM to table UPA II govt’s last report card today.....

New Delhi: Under attack from the Opposition over corruption and lack of governance and with its own allies calling for course correction, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh will on Wednesday present the fourth and last report card of the UPA-II government highlighting its achievements so far. 

According to sources, after presenting the report card of the UPA government’s performance on its fourth anniversary, the Prime Minister will host dinner for the allies and supporting parties. 

The report is the last one for the second edition of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government as there would be a new Lok Sabha by May next year. 

According to sources, the report is expected to highlight the rollout of the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme, and foreign equity in multi-brand retail and insurance as the Congress-led UPA government’s major policy initiatives. 

It will also list the Food Security Bill and the Land Acquisition Bill as pro-poor and pro-reform legislations. 

The report is also likely to mention a bill relating to the time-bound delivery of services as another step to bring more transparency in the functioning of the government, said the sources. 

The three bills are yet to be passed by Parliament. 

UPA-II, which started off with a resurgent mood in 2009, has spent most of its tenure battling charges of corruption related to the 2010 Commonwealth Games, allocations of 2G spectrum and coal blocks and a perceived misgovernance. 

The report is expected to create a positive impression among the people and Congress workers, said the sources.As it prepares for the 2014 General Elections, the UPA appears to have been weakened after two key allies, the Trinamool Congress and the DMK, quit the alliance in the past one year. 

While the Trinamool Congress left in September 2012 against the move to allow FDI in multi-brand retail, the DMK parted ways in March 2013 on the issue of Sri Lankan Tamils. 

This has made the ruling combine more dependent on parties like the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party, which help prop it. 

It would be interesting to watch if SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, who shared the dais with the Prime Minister and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi during the release of the report to the people last year, is also present on the occasion. 

For the Prime Minister, the recent exit of two tainted ministers considered close to him, has dented his image of ‘Mr. Clean’, when he took office for the first time in 2004 and again in 2009. 

Sonia Gandhi, who has backed the Prime Minister all along, may indicate her continued support to him, said the sources. 

Meanwhile, an opinion poll survey conducted on the eve of the fourth anniversary of UPA-II has not brought any cheer to the government, predicting slide in the ruling alliance's tally amid rising dissatisfaction among large sections of urban voters over its performance.