The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has favoured waiving mandi, octroi and local taxes to tackle rising prices. He said the process of receiving these taxes impedes the smooth movement of essential commodities. Addressing the two-day state chief secretaries conference in New Delhi , he said that inflation posed a serious threat to the growth momentum affecting the poor and vulnerable sections. The Prime Minister said there is a need for a paradigm shift in the institutional arrangements, for improving the availability of various commodities to meet the higher levels of domestic consumption. Referring to the internal security situation, he said it is tense in some parts of our country. Dr Singh noted that there has been an unacceptably high level of violence in areas affected by Left-wing extremism and in the Kashmir Valley . He also said that serious concern had been expressed in many responsible circles about the lack of ethical conduct and probity in our public life. The Prime Minister said though major anti-poverty programmes have achieved considerable success, the quality of delivery is not as it could be.