Dealing at length other issues, he admitted that poor people are the worst hit due to rising food prices, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said the government is making every effort to control inflation, which has been over 10 per cent for last several months. He took pride in offering high support prices to farmers since 2004, he said that this also resulted in increased food prices in the open market. Dr. Singh however, defended the recent hike in petroleum prices saying India imports nearly 80 per cent of its requirement and the subsidy was increasing every year. The Prime Minister said that Borlaug Institute of South Asia is being established in India to facilitate availability of new and improved seeds and new technology to the farmers . This will help in increasing production and productivity. He said that the Government is keen to ensure that no citizen goes hungry. Dr. Manmohan Singh said that the challenges like climate change, falling levels of ground water and deteriorating quality of soil need to be tackled effectively to make this sector more robust. The Prime Minister said that the global economic melt down had a little impact on the Indian economy and New Delhi registered impressive growth despite the crises. 8.5 percent growth is expected to be achieved this year. The Prime Minister announced constitution of two separate councils for higher education and health to accelerate reforms in these sectors. He said improvement in the areas of education and health is an important strategy for inclusive growth.The Prime Minister said government will soon bring a bill to Parliament soon for constitution of two separate councils . On the health front, Dr.Singh said though nutritious food and good health services are necessary, they are not enough for ensuring good health of a the citizens. He said there are many diseases which would be difficult to prevent in the cities, towns and villages without cleanliness and good sanitation. He appealed to the state governments, Panchayat Raj Institutions, civil society groups and common citizens to make this campaign successful. The Prime Minister said that the government is committed to maintain peace and harmony as it is their duty to protect the minorities and provide for their special needs. He said that Government has started many new programmes for the welfare of minorities. These include scholarships for minority students and special programmes for the development of districts which have high concentration of minorities. Dr. Singh pledged to take this process vigorously forward. He referred to a number of welfare schemes and programmes lodged by the government to ensure inclusive growth. He added every person living in the rural areas now, has the assurance of 100 days of employment through Mahatma Gandhi NREGA. To ensure equal partnership of women he added, several initiatives have been taken including the passage of a bill the Rajya Sabha providing for reservation of women in Parliament and State Legislatures. The Prime Minister referred to the measures taken by the government in the recent past to meet the infrastructure deficit. They include construction of better roads, airports and generation of electricity etc. Referring to the forthcoming Commonwealth Games, the Prime Minister said that their successful organization will be another signal for the world that India is rapidly marching ahead with confidence. He said that he was convinced that all countrymen will treat the games as the national festival and will leave no stone unturned to make them a success. Dr. Singh extended his heart-felt condolences to the families who lost their kith and kin in Ladakh floods recently. He said the entire country is with the people of Ladakh and assured that government will do everything possible for their rehabilitation of the affected people.