Governments half-way through their term do not usually enjoy much popular support; Prime Ministers less so. Inevitably, the honeymoon period has worn off and citizens are disappointed about the non-fulfillment of the promises made during election campaigns.
 
By that token, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should be a happy man because a majority of people throughout the country think he is competent and are generally satisfied with his performance on many fronts.

That is the central message of the comprehensive poll conducted by this newspaper across nine cities. Whether it is the economy, or social and political issues or on the international front, Manmohan Singh scores well, with more people approving than disapproving.

The respondents have acknowledged that he has worked hard on trying to improve the relationship with the US, while at the same time noticing that incomes have been going up.

But no doubt the Prime Minister should have cause to worry, because the poll shows up some areas in which his performance has been found wanting.

The economist PM may have been perceived to have done well on international trade, but on critical issues that matter to every citizen — rising prices and poverty — his government is seen to have not delivered. Here, statistics may indicate that poverty is actually decreasing, but the perception is otherwise and, in politics, perception always matters.

There is no denying that as the leader of a sometimes fractious coalition government, with partners who have often shown an obstructionist attitude, the Prime Minister has performed creditably on many fronts. But as far as the people are concerned, that is simply not enough.

A foreign policy success does not mean much to the average Indian if, at the same time, he finds that his cost of living has gone up. Somewhere, this government has failed to impart the message that it has the ability or the will to handle bread and butter issues.

For a government that talked about the ‘aam aadmi’, this could have strong electoral repercussions. Good governance is not only about elections, but surely the Prime Minister knows that even the best of performers can get stymied if they are perceived to have not measured up.

Singh has cause to feel satisfied because, on the whole, it is a good report about a good manager, but it shows that much still needs to be done by his government.