Hitting out hard at prime minister Manmohan Singh’s agenda of focusing more on a GDP-oriented growth, social activist Swami Agnivesh said such economic policies have led to the crisis where citizens especially tribals are raising their voice against the government.

“I do not have any hope left from prime minister Manmohan Singh who is not able to devise economic policies beyond the GDP-oriented ones. He is blindly aping the western model of development, leaving inclusive growth very low on the agenda,” Agnivesh told Governance Now in an interview.

"There is a certain crisis where  you can see people revolting at different places in India," Agnivesh added, “I have met PM several times in the last seven years. He is a nice man and listens to the problem, beyond which he is not able to do much.”

Ever since the 1991 liberalisation of the economy, many people have had their lands taken away without proper rehabilitation.

"This has led to a crisis and the government is not able to quell the revolt led by the tribal people and others who live off such resources,” Agnivesh noted.

But he sees a new hope out of this crisis. “It will lead to a new paradigm of growth,” the social activist said.

Commenting on Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi visit to Niyamgiri in Orissa, Agnivesh said, “For the first time in the last 20 years, somebody has given me hope. Rahul Gandhi stopped Vedanta Aluminium’s proposed mining operation in Niyamgiri.”

He also met minister of environment and forest (MoEF) Jairam Ramesh on Saturday and congratulated his ministry’s decision to not to give mining operation to Vedanta in Orissa.

He added that he was still mediating between Maoists and the government after the killing of top Maoist Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad in a police encounter in July in Andhra Pradesh derailed the talk process. Agnivesh had demanded a judicial probe into the killing saying it was a fake encounter. He had also met Gandhi on the issue recently.