Month: September 2012

Former minister Dr P Shanker Rao has said that the credit of introducing Rajiv Arogyasri goes to former chief minister late Dr YSR only.

Speaking to the media at the CLP office here on Tuesday, Dr Rao said that crores of people were getting benefited with the unique health scheme in the State. He advised the State government not to be rigid with regard to solving junior doctors’ demands. He also asked the junior doctors to withdraw their strike keeping the hardships of poor patients in mind.

APCC chief Botcha Satyanarayana has said the State government would honor the High Court verdict and conduct Local Body elections soon.

CPI State secretary Dr K Narayana today made it clear that his party would not go back on the Telangana issue till separate State was carved out even though other parties retraced their step. The CPI has taken up the Telangana issue not for the sake of party’s survival in the region like other parties, he clarified.

State Major and Medium Irrigation Minister P.Sudarshan Reddy has expressed the hope that the serious water crisis would end within the next two days because of copious inflows into Srisailam Reservoir from Karnataka as well as inflow of Thungabhadra river from the Jurala project. Stating that there was an unprecedented drought situation for the first time in fifty years in the state, the minister told a media conference at Nizamabad that the government was now keen to release water from Nagarjuna Sagar down stream because of increased inflows.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy announced that one or two regional study centers in each region exclusively for the benefit of minorities will be established soon.

Junior Doctors all over the state have continued their strike for the 2nd day today protesting against the Government’s decision making rural/tribal service mandatory. With this essential medical services at Gandhi and Osmania Hospitals in Hyderabad and all the Teaching hospitals all over the state have come to a stand still. The talks the government held with the striking Junior Doctors yesterday have ended inconclusively.

Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) has postponed four examinations on Tuesday.

In a press release, APPSC officials stated that Group-I General English examination, which was scheduled to be held on September 16 has been put off to September 28. Municipal Engineers’ Examination, which was slated for September 23, will be held on November 3. Similarly, the Municipal Accountants’ Examination slated for September 24 will be held on November 4.

TDP politburo members Yanamala Ramakrishnudu and Dadi Veerabhadra Rao have alleged that the State government was trying to decrease reservations in the local bodies for Backward Classes people in the State. They demanded that the State government continue reservation to SCs and STs according to their population.

The Lok Satta Party today demanded that the State Government conduct elections to local bodies as soon as possible in the wake of the High Court judgment.

Addressing a media conference, Lok Satta Party leaders feared the Government might use the High Court stipulation that reservations shall not exceed 50 percent as an excuse to postpone elections.

Telangana Praja Front (TPF) president Akula Bhumaiah has demanded that the State government withdraw false cases against the Telangana protagonists.

Dalitha Samkshema Sangham has demanded that the State government immediately suspend Moinabad Circle Police Inspector Shekhar Goud, who was actively involving in civil matters even as the Supreme Court had directed the police officials not to involve in civil disputes.

Progressive Organization of Women’s (POW) twin cities executive committee has extended its support to the call for ‘Hyderabad March’ on September 30, given by Telangana Political Joint Action Committee.

Speaking to mediapersons here on Tuesday, POW State president V. Sandhya demanded that Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu and YSR Congress party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy to spell out their stand on separate Telangana issue. She also alleged that the Congress party was adopting double standards on the decades old Telangana issue.

Veteran film director-producer and former Union minister Dasari Narayana Rao has made it clear that the CBI did not interrogate him in the coal scam.

Speaking to the media here on Tuesday, Dasarai Narayana Rao said that the CBI also did not conduct search operations in his offices and his institutions. (NSS)

The Andhra Pradesh high court has directed the State government to hold elections to local bodies as per the guidelines of the Supreme Court within three months.

In a judgment here on Tuesday, the court also instructed the government to ensure that the reservations would not cross 50 percent and send a report to the Election Commission regarding the reservations. A bench comprising Chief Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghosh and Justice Vilas V Afzal Purkar issued these directions to the government.

Vegetable farmers and vendors of Avanigadda and its surrounding villages in Krishna district called on Telugu Desam party chief N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday and narrated their tales of woe. They complained to the former chief minister that those who obtained rights to conduct auctions in gram panchayats were harassing them by extorting more money than the rates fixed by the panchayats.

TRS floor leader in the Assembly Etela Rajender on Tuesday emphatically said that there was no iota of truth in the reports that the TRS merger into the Congress was imminent.

Speaking to the media here, Rajender said that they would take a final decision on Telangana March after discussing it in the party. Welcoming the High Court verdict on the conduct of local bodies’ elections within three months, Etela demanded that the government implement the court verdict.

The once disciplined state police force appears to be turning out to be a most in-disciplined cadre with power-struggle amongst the seniors taking ugly turn on one hand and the ‘bait’ charges against other officers on the other coming to the fore for public debate.

Who has to be blamed for such a mess in the state police? Is it because of a weak-kneed Congress-led government?

It seems too many claimants to take credit for state bifurcation with the rumor mill making rounds that the UPA-II formed core-committee has come to a conclusion on the issue and the decision may be pronounced any time from now.

Tension prevailed in Kabutarkhana area of the Old City on Tuesday morning after a woman was stopped by police from performing puja at a disputed banyan tree located near a mosque.

The banyan tree became a point of dispute between two groups about three months ago when its branches were cut down as they were hindering the construction going on at Masjid-e-Noor. The dispute came to a boil when some people demanded that the banyan tree, which is considered holy, should not be cut down. Ever since, a police picket was posted in the area to prevent the situation from going out of control.