Hyderabad, April 24: The Home Minister’s `nephew’ who enjoyed the hopitality of a local resort as a State Guest along with his friends for four days running up a bill of over Rs 50,000, had VIP darshan and accommodation at Tirumala and came out of police clutches at Visakhapatnam, is finally cooling his heels behind the bars.
Police on Friday nabbed the conman, K Praveen Kumar, an engineering graduate and a resident of Dilsukhnagar.
Hyderabad, April 24: The South Central Railway has bagged the highest number of All-India Efficiency Shields during 55th Railway Week celebrations.
Union Minister for Railways Mamata Banerjee presented the awards to meritorious staff and officers at a function held in Delhi yesterday. Ef ficiency shields were given away for the best-performing zonal railway for the previous year.
Hyderabad, April 24: The chairman of the committee on the Telangana question, Justice B S Srikrishna on Friday said that while the panel would take a hard look at facts and figures relating to the status of Telangana within the Andhra Pradesh state, the sentiments of the people would also be considered.
Hyderabad, April 24: Maoists on Saturday damaged two vehicles including one belonging to state police and blocked roads by chopping down trees in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam district, police said.
Two vehicles were burnt by CPI (Maoist) ultras on Chintalamma and Koyyur ghat road in Koyyur mandal in the wee hours of today, Visakhapatnam district Superintendent of Police Vineet Brij Lal, told PTI over phone.
Hyderabad, April 24: The second campus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, is likely to come up in Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur district.
Union Minister for Human Resources Development Kapil Sibal in a letter to Chief Minister K. Rosaiah Saturday said the central government was examining a proposal of Andhra Pradesh in this regard and had discussed the idea with IISc, Bangalore.
Hyderabad, April 24: All temple lands in the state will be fenced and the government will set up a tribunal to solve the cases of encroachment of temple lands, endowments minister Gade Venkata Reddy has said.
Speaking with reporters here today, Reddy said there were about 3,000 cases of encroachment of temple lands.
To renovate the temples ravaged by the floods that occurred in Oct last year, an amount of Rs 3.36 crore was allocated and the work was completed in regard to 39 temples which cost Rs 77 lakh.
Tirumala, April 24: The Big Two of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams — chairman D K Adikesavulu Naidu and executive officer I Y R Krishna Rao — are again locked in a combat following the High Court stay of the goldplating work on the Ananda Nilayam.
Both deny any differences, but it is evident they are pulling the gold-plating project in opposite directions.
The project, named Ananta Swarnamayam, is being questioned in the High Court by one Raghava Reddy of the Hindu Devalaya Parirakshana Samithi. The court stayed the work on Thursday.
Hyderabad, April 24: Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi’s proposed yatra and the screening of his brother Pawan Kalyan’s forthcoming film, Komaram Puli, are likely to face rough weather in Telangana.
The Osmania University Students Joint Action Committee (OUJA C) has declared that it will go all out to stop Chiranjeevi from undertaking his yatra in the region.
Hyderabad, April 24: Innocence is being sacrificed on the altar of commerce and cheap fame, and the evil nexus between TRP-hungry TV channels and pushy parents sees little ones gyrating suggestively before cameras to popular “item numbers’’.
Hyderabad, April 24: With PSR Anjaneyulu taking charge as the Vijayawada city police commissioner in spite of his indictment by the Press Council of India (PCI), journalist unions have decided to launch agitation against government’s `insensitivity’ to freedom of the press.’ Journalists will stage a one-day hunger strike on April 28 in which leaders of journalist unions and senior journalists from the print and electronic media will participate.
Hyderabad, April 24: Congress leaders are said to be opposing the appointment of IPS officer Charu Sinha as DIG Anantapur because during her previous assignment in the district she was tough on students of Sri Krishnadevaraya University, Anantapur agitation for a united Andhra Pradesh.
Senior police officials, however, see this only as a ruse. They say it is the powerful mining lobby which does not want Sinha back as she is known to be an upright officer.
Sangareddy, April 24: Minister for rural development Vatti Vasanth Kumar has said wages for the NREGS labourers would be hiked in May in the wake of sweltering heat.
Kumar, accompanied by local minister V Sunita Reddy, participated in Prajapatham gram sabhas in various villages of Narsapur constituency today.
Hyderabad, April 24: The Congress high command, after finalising its candidates to contest the May 7 Legislative Council elections from the local authority constituencies of Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts, has now focused its attention on the Rajya Sabha elections which are likely to be held next month.
The term of six MPs _ Union minister Jairam Ramesh, V Hanumantha Rao, JD Seelam, N Janardhan Reddy, Girish Sanghi (all Congress) and P Madhu (CPM) _ will come to an end on June 21.
The process to fill these seats will be completed by the end of May.
Hyderabad, April 23: Telangana Joint Action Committee convenor Kodandaram has appealed to the Telugu film industry to extend co-operation and support to the movie, “Dhoom Dhaam”, made against the backdrop of the Telangana issue. “Everyone should watch the film, especially the Andhra and Rayalaseema region people,” he said.
Hyderabad, April 23: Justice L. Narasimha Reddy of the High Court on Thursday directed the HMDA to return the Rs. 435 crore to the successful bidders who came forward to purchase lands in Kokapet in 2006-2007.
The petitioners contended that after they deposited crores of rupees it came to light that there was litigation by Ali and others regarding the ownership of the property. They submitted various letters by the authorities asking them to deposit all the amounts.
The petitioners said that they were not given the land in time and hence want all the monies paid by them to be repaid.
Karimnagar, April 23: Who would have thought that an auspicious day like Mahasivaratri would, on the contrary, usher in despair and anxiety? But that is what happened to Thota Tirupati and his wife Tirumala on 12 February, 2010.
Their daughter, Deepika, was playing with friends on the terrace of the house opposite theirs in Shanigaram, Kamalapur mandal, when she came in contact with a high tension live wire.
The left hand had to be amputated and the right leg as well.
Hyderabad, April 23: In order to provide relief to stray animals and birds reeling under scorching heat, animal rights organisations appealed to Chief Minister K Rosaiah to ensure that drinking water tubs are kept at open places in all major towns and villages for the poor creatures to quench their thirst.
Animal Rights Organisation president D Ram Mohan Rao told newsmen that hundreds of stray animals were dying unable to get drinking water in view of acute scarcity.
Hyderabad, April 23: The State Cabinet gave its nod to the AP Power Finance Corporation to mobilise Rs 2,000 crore through private placement of power bonds.
This would come as another revenue source to the power selling utilities in the state, which have already been given green signal to enhance power tariffs.
With the mobilisation of Rs 2,000 crore the revenue deficit would come down to Rs 5,000 crore.
Vishakapatnam, April 23: Two schoolchildren who claimed they were kidnapped by unidentified persons in Hyderabad yesterday, were today “rescued” by Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel at Waltair station here today.
The police said they were yet to verify the claims of the children. Nagulavari Pujitha and Akash Dubey — both aged 13 and Class VII students at the Krishnaveni Talent School at Hyderguda under the Rajendranagar police station limits — were missing since yesterday afternoon.
Akash lives in Gudimalkapuram Mandi in Mehdipatnam and Pujitha in Hyderguda.
Hyderabad, April 23: DSC-2008 qualified candidates made a vain bid to stage a protest outside the Secretariat here on Thursday demanding filling of all posts notified for the teachers’ recruitment test. Moments of tension prevails as heavy deployment of police was made in and around the Secretariat to prevent the protesters entering the complex as the Cabinet meeting was in progress.
Hyderabad, April 23: The Telugu Desam today demanded dismissal of Vatti Vasantha Kumar and Dharmana Prasada Rao from the ministry for their alleged role in the “misuse’’ of NREGS funds.
Speaking to reporters here today, TDP leader Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu alleged that the government was violating the NREG Act.
“The material component in some works was 90 per cent as against the stipulated 10 per cent.’’ He wanted the state government to appoint ombudsmen for NREGS works.
Hyderabad, April 23: British deputy high commissioner for South India, who is based in Chennai, visited Telangana Bhavan, the TRS headquartersl at Banjara Hills here today and met party chief K Chandrasekhar Rao and other leaders.
During his 45-minute interaction, Mike sought clarifications on the Telangana movement and its impact on all sections of society. He also heard their views on the welfare of the Muslim community and how a separate state of Telangana, if formed, would control extremism.
Warangal, April 23: Two sisters belonging to the district have `escaped’ from the trap of a procuress and lodged a complaint with the police today. However, police said they were not completely believing the versions of the women.
Boda Jyothi (17) and her elder sister Boda Radha (21), both residents of Chatarajukunta in Warangal city, alleged that a woman tried to trap them and sell them off to agents in Mumbai Red Light Area.
Jyothi, who escaped from Hyderabad, approached Mills Colony police and lodged a complaint today.
Hyderabad, April 23: A 22-member delegation of the Praja Rajyam Party headed by its president K Chiranjeevi met the members of Justice BN Srikrishna Committee today at the Lake View guest House here. The meeting lasted for nearly 2 hours.
Chiranjeevi emphasised the need for the state to remain united for sustained and faster growth.
Vijayawada, April 23: The hailstorm that lashed Krishna, Guntur and Khammam districts last night caused heavy loss to mango farmers, who are already a depressed lot due to the low yield.
Mango crop stands at 30-40 per cent in many areas this year due to severe heat conditions and lack of rains for the past two months.