HYDERABAD, NOV. 30. The Congress Rajya Sabha member, Jairam Ramesh, has contested the claim of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi that the UPA Government at the Centre is on the verge of forming Telangana State.

Talking to the presspersons here on Tuesday after attending a Congress MPs' meeting with the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, he said the UPA had only formed a sub-committee to discuss the modalities for consultation on the Telangana issue.

The committee would submit its report to the UPA and the Centre would take a decision at an appropriate time, he said.

The National Employment Guarantee Programme would become effective by April next, he added.

Food programme

The programme aims at providing a minimum of 100 working days to the youth and the Food-for-work programme would be coupled with it by then.

The MP said eight districts had been identified in Andhra Pradesh and the bill would be introduced in the Lok Sabha before December 23. In all, it would be introduced in 150 districts across the country.

He gave a clean chit to Government in the tenders issue.