In his first address to a Congress plenary, Rahul Gandhi [Images] on Monday sought special focus on the Hindi heartland to revive the party's prospects in its traditional stronghold.

"North India has been our stronghold, a source of power. Why is it that it has now become our weakness?" he asked.

Gandhi attributed the party's poor showing in parts of India to what he called its failure to come up to public expectations. "We owe our rise to people. Similarly, if we have not been able to perform well in some states it is because of failure to address public grievances," he said.

Observing that the Congress party has 'huge opportunities', Rahul Gandhi said, "We have Manmohan Singh [Images], our prime minister and Sonia Gandhi [Images], our party president, who make us proud."

While the Congress is the oldest party, it is also the youngest and has the largest number of young leaders who are looking forward and possessed with modern thinking, he said.

Urging the youth to go to villages and universities to strengthen the party, Rahul Gandhi said, "Move away from the corridors of power and work among the masses rather than [aspiring for] posts and positions."

"We have new challenges to overcome and new dreams to fulfill", he told the delegates.