In the wake of the chief ministers of Telangana and residual Andhra Pradesh taking oath of office on June 2 and June 8 respectively, the impact of it is being felt thousands of kilometres away in Lyutens Delhi.
A casual visit to the popular Andhra Bhawan in the heart of Central Delhi has revealed that its 96 employees have been segregated, at least on paper, with 38 deployed for the proposed Telangana segment of the bhawan, and the remaining 58 for the residual Andhra segment of the bhawan.
Kiran Kumar, Special Officer of Andhra Pradesh Information Centre, told ANI: “The staff of Andhra Bhawan has been bifurcated. Out of the 96 those were working here, 38 has been alloted to the state of Telangana.”
People wanting to stay at the bhawan, will be accomodated as per the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, which will follow a 58:42 ratio. Forty two rooms in the Bhawan will be given to the Telangana administration, Kumar revealed.
Hopping over to the famed Andhra Bhawan canteen, which has a huge footfall because of the delectable and sumptuous spread it offers, one can hardly see any sign of a strong apathy towards people from residual Andhra Pradesh.
By and large, people present there, when asked for their comments, seemed reticent and reluctant to say anything on the bifurcation and its impact on their lives in Delhi. They were, however, emphatic in stating that they really did not care too much about politics, and instead, appealed to be allowed to enjoy the spread before them.
The manager of the Andhra Canteen refused to speak, and also insisted that his customers not be disturbed.
Kumar said: “Regarding canteens, auditoriums and conference hall, all will be under Andhra Bhawan itself, and the same will be continued. Hence, there is no question of anyone being discomforted. There is no change in the working pattern of the canteen .”
Clearly, the aim from the Andhra Bhawan side was not to ruffle the sentiments of people who had come there for a good time. By Subhajit Chandra (ANI)