The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Enthusiasm brims over at YSR yatra

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 12, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Enthusiasm brims over at YSR yatra

By Our Staff Reporter

VISAKHAPATNAM, APRIL 11. The former leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP), Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, on Sunday accused the Chief Minister of resorting to "wholesale looting of the State." He was addressing meetings at Anakapalle, Achutapuram, Parawada, Sabbavaram, and Pendurthy as part of his "Jaitra yatra."

On arrival at Pendurthy, the former Chief Minister, N. Janardhan Reddy, the senior leader, Dronamraju Satyanarayana, the party candidate for Anakapalle Lok Sabha, Nandgopal, the nominees for Pendurthy and Parawada, Tippala Gurumurthy Reddy, G. Babji, greeted him. Several TDP leaders including the Gajuwaka town unit president, Prabhavati, joined the Congress in the presence of Dr. Reddy. Slogans like "Kaboye mukhyamantri YSR, YSR" (Future CM YSR YSR) and "Pullivendula pulli bidda YSR YSR'' (Pullivendula tiger's child YSR YSR'' rent the air throughout his 15-minute speech.

The enthusiasm was such that the audience disrupted Mr. Janardhan Reddy's speech. Irked by slogans interrupting his speech, he told a Congress worker: "Hey tiger, listen to me for a few minutes. Otherwise, I will send YSR to the chariot."

Speaking atop the specially-made ratham, Dr. Reddy took potshots at the TDP Government and said that Mr. Naidu had done nothing for the people during his nine-year rule except "amassing huge wealth and filling the pockets of the yellow brigade."

Dr. Reddy said Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) was cleared when Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister. Mr. Naidu should remember that the flyovers, express highways and a few buildings in Hyderabad might impress foreign dignitaries but not the masses, he added.

He said the Chief Minister resorted to heavy dosage of taxation under the plea that he needed funds to continue Rs. 2-a-kilo rice scheme and total prohibition. "But after imposing taxes worth Rs. 3,000 crores, he increased the price of Rs. 2-a-kilo rice to Rs. 5.40 and put a fullstop to prohibition,'' he said.

"What has Mr. Naidu done with the Rs. 54,000 crore loan taken from the World Bank. Not a single project worth its name has been implemented with these loans,'' he averred.

Ridiculing the Chief Minister's appeal to the voters to give him an opportunity for next five years so that he could accord priority to agriculture, he said "How can we believe him when he failed to do anything for the farm sector so far.''

The Congress leader said the April 20 elections had come as a big opportunity for the people to oust the TDP Government. Earlier, Mr. Janardhan Reddy said that he was in the fray for Visakhapatnam Lok Sabha seat to fight for increasing the capacity of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant from three to five million tonne and bring new industries to Visakhapatnam.

Our Vizianagaram Correspondent adds: Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy asked voters to bring back `Indiramma Rajyam' for redressal of their woes. Addressing an unscheduled meeting at Kothavalasa, where his Jaitra yatra Radham arrived at 6.15 p.m., two hours behind schedule on Sunday, Dr. Reddy took a dig at the Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu for neglecting the farm sector. He said that no Chief Minister had ever said that `Farming is a waste'. He recalled the Union Minister, Bandaru Dattatreya's reported remark that farmers were ending lives `due to indigestion' and alleged that farmers under Raiwada Reservoir project were caned and fined at when they demanded their share of water last year. Dr. Reddy assured the farming community that Raiwada water would be reserved for farmers and the Vizagites would be supplied `Godavari waters' for drinking and industrial needs if the Congress was voted to power.

The Congress leader also pointed out irregularities in the Food for Work programme. He promised loans to DWACRA women at 25 paise interest, construction of eight lakh houses and increase in old-age pension from Rs.75 to Rs. 225.

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