The Hindu : A race against time for Ministers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 22, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

A race against time for Ministers

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, FEB. 21. Dates for the general and State Assembly elections might still be hazy but for politicians the poll fever has already caught on.

Ministers, especially are the busiest of the lot running against time to participate in as many programmes as possible, official or not. A good example of this was evident at the foundation stone laying ceremony, for the construction of extra floors for two schools located within the same campus on the Dharam Karam road at Ameerpet here on Saturday. The Union Minister of State for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation, Bandaru Dattatreya, and the State Commercial Taxes Minister K. Vijayarama Rao, were to participate in the function along with the Mayor, T. Krishna Reddy.

But, here the general protocol went for a toss. Mr. Vijayarama Rao came almost on the dot at 10 a.m., broke a coconut and asked the project - a collaborative effort of the State Government and Naandi Foundation to construct first and second floor for the Government Girls Upper Primary School and Government Boys High School -- to be completed within six months.

He left immediately stating that he had important matters to attend. After a while came Mr. Dattatreya. He too followed the routine of breaking coconuts and exclaimed he had to rush elsewhere. Schoolchildren eagerly waiting to have an interaction with the Ministers since morning were a disappointed lot. The Ministers did not even have the time to witness the rendering of `Vandemataram' the children were all set to sing.

Even while Mr. Dattatreya was completing the formalities, the District Collector, Veerabhadraiah, rushed to the school. After chatting with him for a minute or two, Mr. Dattatreya left. One hour past the scheduled programme, there was no sign of the first citizen still though his name was prominent on the plank. About 25 rooms to house classrooms, labs and staff rooms would be constructed at a cost of Rs. 38.75 lakhs with the Government pitching in 70 per cent of the funds and Naandi Foundation, 30 per cent.

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