Gulbarga-Hubli (PTI): Terming terrorism as a "global problem" in the wake of the Jaipur serial bomb blasts, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday asked opposition parties to cooperate with the government to crush the menace.

Addressing public meetings in Gulbarga and Hubli which will go to polls in the third phase of Karnataka assembly elections on May 22, Gandhi said the UPA government would take steps to curb terrorist activities in the country. Condemning the serial blasts at Jaipur, she said the Centre has been extending all help to Rajasthan.

She asked opposition parties to cooperate in crushing the menace of terrorism, which she termed as "global problem". Appealing to voters to elect the Congress government in the state, Gandhi assured them that her party will honour all the promises it has made in its manifesto, including distribution of rice at Rs two per kg to poor.

Earlier, at Hubli, she promised to address the development issues of North Karnataka region and to implement Hubli-Ankola Railway line if her party is voted to power. She appealed to the electorate to vote Congress for a stable government and all round development.

Karnataka suffered during the regime of JDS-BJP coalition government, she said and hit out at the combine charging "they quarrelled for selfish ends". Gandhi touched upon the Rs 60,000 crore farmers' loan waiver scheme announced by the UPA government and several welfare programmes it was initiating. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has implemented several pro-poor and pro-farmer policies, including the Rs 25,000 crore National Krishi Yojana, she said.

"The Congress is the only party which takes care of all sections of society and would not divide society on caste and religion." She also referred to the introduction of the bill to provide for 33 per cent reservation to women.