While the official report card is yet to be known, what is the general perception of the Manmohan Singh government? Has it implemented its promises or is there something lacking? The perception is that of a half empty-half full syndrome.

When the Cabinet was sworn in after the Lok Sabha polls, there was a lot of feel-good factor for the government and the public. The expectations were high as the Congress had emerged not only stronger; it also did not have to deal with irksome allies like the left partners. Except for the initial problem of finding berths for the allies like the DMK, the government formation was quite smooth.

The first broad contours of what the Manmohan Singh government wanted to do during its second term were spelt out in the President's address to the joint session of the 15th Lok Sabha.

The President listed 24 things the UPA government would do in its first 100 days. These included internal security and preservation of communal harmony, stepping up of economic growth, particularly in agriculture, manufacturing and services. She also mentioned consolidation of the existing flagship programmes for employment, education, health, and rural infrastructure, Urban renewal besides introduction of new flagship programmes for food security and skill development. Women empowerment including early passage of the women's reservation bill and constitutional amendment to provide 50 per cent reservation for women in panchayats and urban local bodies were also mentioned. Action for the welfare of weaker sections and minorities besides disabled and senior citizens and governance reform were the other points covered in the President's speech. The other important areas were prudent fiscal management and energy security.

How many of these ambitious proposals have been concretised? While some like the right to education bill and NREGA had been taken up, there are others like women's reservation which have not been taken up. Land acquisition bill was shelved in the Budget session following opposition from the UPA ally Trinamool Congress; the judges bill could not be taken up either.

As expected, the left parties have demolished the performance of the UPA government's 100 days as a big flop particularly in the areas of price rise, foreign policy and enactment of new laws in Parliament. Even the Right to Education Bill passed in both the Houses of Parliament have come in for criticism.

The BJP too is quite dismissive of the government's 100-day performance.

One cannot entirely fault the government as things beyond its control had made it difficult to implement some of the ambitious projects. Several Cabinet ministers, especially those of agriculture, human resource development, minority affairs and rural development, had prepared ambitious 100-day agendas but not even half them could be taken up.

A cursory look at the performance of some key ministries shows that Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee came up with a good budget and fulfilled the promise of a new direct tax code. The social sector got higher allocation. The Union ministry of rural development has already written to state governments to send fresh proposals for allocations to be made in the NREGS and Backward Region Grant Fund for their states.

But the biggest setback for the government plans on economy came from the failure of monsoon resulting in 171 districts being declared as drought-hit. The kharif crops are lost, and the only hope is the rabi crop for which the government has hiked the MSP. The Agriculture Ministry is now battling with the drought.

The second big jolt came from the spiraling rise in prices of essential commodities. The prices of dal, vegetables and edible oil have hit the roof. With the festival season round the corner, the government would come in for flak if the prices are not checked.

The third blow for the government was the advent of the swine flu, which is spreading fast. The Health Ministry, instead of concentrating on national health mission, is battling with the swine flu. The ministry's biggest failure is that it has not been unable to arrest the panic among the people.

On the foreign policy front, the government faced embarrassment. The External Affairs ministry, headed by S.M. Krishna was criticised although the PM was the real target. As soon as Krishna took over, he faced the racial attack on Indian students in Australia. Then there was this controversial joint statement made by the Prime Minister and Pakistan Prime Minister Geelani in Egypt. Singh came in for severe criticism not only from the opposition but also from his own party. The MEA and the PMO failed to do any damage control.

The first problem faced by the Home Ministry was the violence in Punjab following the attack on some Sikhs in Vienna. The bigger challenge facing the ministry is the internal security and the Naxalites.

As for the Civil Aviation Ministry, the less said the better. Air India is in a mess. The private airlines are also on the warpath. As far as the petroleum ministry is concerned, the minister managed to do a balancing act on the petrol hike but the ministry is now caught in a first class corporate war between the Ambani brothers. There was much embarrassment to the government on this issue.

However, on the political front, the Congress party has much to cheer. The opposition is demoralised. The BJP is facing a severe identity crisis and internal squabbling particularly after the expulsion of Jaswant Singh. The left parties are still nursing their wounds. The Samajwadi Party came a cropper in the recent by-elections. The BSP is sulking while smaller parties like the RJD are making efforts to patch up with the Congress. If the Congress takes this opportunity to lead, then it would become stronger. (IPA Service)