HYDERABAD: The Telugu Desam Party on Saturday launched a broadside against the State and Centre for not doing anything to check the skyrocketing prices of essential commodities.

K. Yerran Naidu, party MP, referred to the recent decrease in the price of oil to US $ 50 a barrel and wanted the intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in ensuring that petroleum prices were brought down immediately to what it was when per barrel price of oil was US $ 50.

Comparing the rates of essential provisions in 2003 and now, party general secretary B. Sobha Nagi Reddy said the price of rice had gone up from Rs. 12 to Rs. 21 a kilo, red gram from Rs. 20 to Rs. 42, black gram from Rs. 22 to Rs. 61, green gram from Rs. 24 to Rs. 60, tamarind from Rs. 29 to Rs. 60, red chillis from Rs. 24 to Rs. 80 and sugar from Rs. 13 to Rs. 21.

Rythu Bazars

She recalled that TDP Government had started `Rythu Bazars' in order to give vegetable growers a `middleman-free' atmosphere and the consumers vegetables at lower cost.

She recalled that the Rythu Bazaars also stocked other provisions and fruits.

Another party leader, Motukupalli Narasimhulu, regretted that the Congress Government had even decreased the quota of kerosene issued against white ration cards from 18 litres earlier to 10 litres now.

He said Sankranti this time round would be `dark' as far as the common man was concerned.

At NTR Bhavan, the party headquarters here, three large posters with cartoons depicting the price rise were put on display.

`YSR has lost tolerance'

At a press conference earlier, Mr. Yerran Naidu said Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy had lost tolerance and was reacting to criticism by the Opposition with anger.

He said Dr. Reddy was claiming credit for all the development in the State and in the twin cities forgetting that it was the TDP Government that had taken all the initiatives that were bearing fruit now.

"Be it Hi-Tec City, IIIT, ISB, Insurance Regulatory Development Authority, international airport, Fab City. You name it, it was the TDP's push with the Centre and our leader N. Chandrababu Naidu's initiative that turned dreams into reality.

How can Dr. Reddy miss seeing all that, he asked.

IIT row

Referring to the recent controversy over the Government deciding to have the Indian Institute of Technology at Medak near the State Capital instead of at Basar as originally decided, former MP Ummareddy Venkateswarlu said it was unfortunate.

"How can the Government fail to take cognisance of the fact that it had been discussed in the Assembly and a consensus reached in the House at least thrice for the IIT to be located in Basar in Adilabad district, he asked.

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