Wednesday, Sep 10, 2003
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Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad
By Our Staff Reporter
Speaking to the press here on Tuesday, Brinda Karat, AIDWA general secretary, said they would be presenting a five-point memorandum to the Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, listing these issues. Quoting from surveys conducted by the AIDWA in various parts of Andhra Pradesh, Ms. Karat said the State Government was violating Supreme Court guidelines regarding food distribution. The Supreme Court had stipulated in May this year that vulnerable sections of the population should be provided 35 kg of subsidised rice and wheat per month under the "Antodaya'' scheme. Not only were widows and single women not being given "Antodaya'' cards, even the distribution of "Below Poverty Line'' cards had stopped for more than a decade. She demanded the expansion of the Public Distribution System, proper identification of BPL families and immediate implementation of the Antodaya scheme. Ms. Karat said while people were not getting proper food and women often have to queue for hours for one pot of drinking water, alcohol was flowing freely even in remote corners of the State. She expressed grave concern at the rising alcoholism in the State and reminded Mr. Naidu of the "inspiring'' anti-liquor struggle of women. She demanded a reversal of this "liberal'' policy and proper compensation to the families of those who have died due to illicit liquor. Ms. Karat also found fault with the "two-child'' policy of the State Government and demanded an immediate halt to quotas being given to district administrations for sterilisation. She said that coercion in population policies was a universally discredited method and went against the National Population Policy of the Government of India to which the ruling TDP is a signatory. The "disastrous'' effects of this "two-child'' policy were visible in the falling male-female sex-ratio in the 0-6 age group. In four districts, Ranga Reddy, Kurnool, Chittoor and Krishna, the sex ratio for the 0-6 age group had fallen below 950 which was the danger mark. She pointed to the "proliferation'' of mobile ultra-sound clinics which were taking sex-determination tests to the rural interiors of the State. Despite this clear trend, the Government had been lax in implementing the PNDT Act which bars sex-determination tests. In the last three years only one case had been filed in the State, she claimed. Ms. Karat appealed to the Chief Minister to monitor the implementation of the PNDT Act in his weekly videoconferences with the district authorities. If proper measures were not taken now it could lead to long-term damage to society, she warned and said that a campaign against "son preference'' in our culture had to be launched. Ms. Karat also sought Mr. Naidu's intervention to reverse the trend of Dalit and tribal women lapsing out of the self-help groups due to their inability to make daily contributions. She said these issues raised basic questions regarding Andhra Pradesh's development strategy. She argued that liberalisation denied social justice and the need for social reform. The attack on the basic right to food, the spread of alcoholism and the killing of female foetuses and babies was a direct result of this skewed development model, she asserted.
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