The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Pension: Rosaiah's retort to TDP

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Friday, Mar 02, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Pension: Rosaiah's retort to TDP

Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD: Finance Minister K. Rosaiah narrated a parable in the Assembly on Thursday to drive home his point that the present Government had granted old-age pension and white ration cards more liberally than ever.

To differentiate this from the situation under the Telugu Desam regime earlier, he spoke of an old woman who woke up early and waited at the doorstep of others' houses. One day, on being asked why she was doing so, she said she heard that somebody in the house fell terminally sick and might collapse. She said she made repeated requests for grant of an old-age pension. It was ruled out under the policy of (TDP) Government. She would get the pension only if a beneficiary died.

E. Dayakar Rao and P. Keshav of the TDP said Mr. Rosaiah had acted like a "clerk" while preparing the budgets under successive Chief Ministers. Countering the charge, the Finance Minister retorted: "Yes, successive Chief Ministers gave me keys of the "gallapetti" (treasury) as I worked sincerely. Perhaps, Chief Ministers may think twice to hand over keys to people like Mr. Keshav," .

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