Party Secretary Jairam Ramesh told newspersons that it was only after prices of essential commodities registered unprecedented increase and the Congress party exerted relentless pressure that the BJP faced with the prospects of facing an angry electorate announced some measures to check the price spiral.

The government, he pointed out had promised import of 60,000 tonnes of onion in the past three weeks and demanded it come out with actual figures of imports.

According to our information only a negligible amount of onions has come in and added that it is not exports but the govt's delayed decision which resulted in price rise.

Commenting on Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's recent announcement that a Cabinet committee would monitor the prices every week, Ramesh wondered whetherthe committee had gone to sleep ever since the BJP came to power.He pointed out that the BJP and its allies control 12 out of the 26 states including Delhi, but they miserably failed to initiate any action including de-hoarding operations against speculators black marketeers and hoarders.

Why onions and potatoes were not brought under the list of essential commodities to enable action against hoarders ? he asked.

Mamata pats move

Trinamool Congress founder Mamata Banerjee was today said she was happy with the Vajpayee government's ``belated action'' to check price rise of essential commodities.

She said though the Centre had acted rather late, ``such result-oriented steps'' were welcome to arrest price rise.