The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Vijayawada News : A platform to air their grievances

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 27, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada

A platform to air their grievances

Special Correspondent

VIJAYAWADA: Claims of officials over provision of several facilities to people notwithstanding, the absence of basic amenities like drinking water and proper sanitation continue to dog the residents, particularly those in slums and hill slopes, if the complaints pouring in from the people are any indication.

Conclusion today

After the Prajahita Yatra conducted by the CPI (M) and the Praja Patham by the administration, the Samarabheri programme launched by the city council of the CPI turned out to be a platform for the residents to vent their complaints. The Samarabheri launched on May 16 is coming to a close on Friday even as the delegation of the CPI leaders led by the party's city secretary, K. Sekhar Babu, touched every nook and corner of the city.

The CPI leaders visited all the divisions and interacted with people. And, the complaints continued to be the same on the lines of those received during the two previous programmes - from the shortage of drinking water and improper sanitation to delay in the award of house site pattas. And, the number of complaints received by the CPI leaders was more in terms of numbers as the intense heat wave conditions that engulfed the city only accentuated the problems.

The Samarabheri programme coming after the impressive response to the Prajahita yatra launched by the CPI (M), however, had its political overtones - seen by the party as the first step towards the campaign in the ensuing municipal elections, while giving scope for many to raise their eyebrows in other political parties over the much-claimed unity among the Left wing parties in the city. The party leaders, however, claimed all through that the programme was being conducted to have first hand information about the problems faced by the people and take them up with the authorities concerned. But, the announcement of the programme, the other political parties say, after the issue of notification of the delimitation of wards and the successful completion of the Prajahita Yatra, was itself an indication of the CPI's efforts to gear its cadre for the upcoming elections.

Unlike the Praja Patham programme, which was conducted without any publicity, meticulous planning went into the conduct of the programme by the CPI leaders scheduling their visits and informing the people much in advance.

But, the programme lacked one major constituent that played a key part in the overwhelming success of the yatra launched by the CPI (M) - staying with people through days and nights. While the CPI (M) leaders conducted their yatra without interruption, the CPI's Samarabheri was conducted in phases - first phase in one locality between 8 am and 11 am and the second in an altogether different locality in the evenings everyday.

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