BJP decries Congress leaders’ “Goebbellian propaganda” on victory in three States

HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party has accused the Congress leaders of indulging in “Goebbellian propaganda” that the party’s victory in three States reflected the trust reposed by people in AICC president Sonia Gandhi’s leadership.

At a press conference here on Wednesday, G. Kishan Reddy, MLA, and N. Ramchander Rao, spokesperson, said that the BJP had lost to the Congress in Rajasthan and New Delhi due to certain lapses in the party’s strategy and not due to people’s faith in Ms. Gandhi’s leadership.

They maintained that the Congress had won in only five of the 18 States after Manmohan Singh became the Prime Minister. Did it mean that the party was defeated in the remaining 13 States due to lack of people’s faith in her stewardship? The BJP leaders said local issues, a leader’s ability and the government’s functioning would impact the outcome in such elections rather than national issues. They hit out at the Congress for indulging in propaganda that people were not affected by recent incidents of terrorism.

Acid attack on two girls in A.P.

WARANGAL: In a ghastly incident, two girl students of KITS engineering college were attacked with acid by motorcycle-borne miscreants when they were returning home on a scooter here on Wednesday. K. Swapnika was badly injured while her friend T. Praneetha (21) sustained severe burns.

Police are searching for Srinivas, a neighbour of Swapnika, and for possible accomplices. They have constituted three special teams to nab Srinivas, who was arrested sometime ago following a complaint that he was harassing the girl.

Ms. Swapnika was battling for life at the MGM Hospital as she sustained 40 per cent burns on her shoulders while her right eye was badly damaged. Doctors reportedly advised the parents to shift her to Hyderabad for advanced treatment. Meanwhile, Praneetha, who was driving the two-wheeler, escaped with relatively less injuries as she was wearing a helmet. She was admitted to a private hospital.

K. Devender Rao, father of Swapnika, alleged that the police failed to take sufficient action against Srinivas although he had lodged a complaint at the Subedari police station. An ex-servicemen residing in Bhavani Nagar, Mr. Rao said Srinivas (32), a realtor, had been harassing his daughter for long, seeking her love. When he warned him to desist from such harassment, Srinivas burnt his two-wheeler one night to intimidate his family. Mr. Devender said the police registered a case against the accused, who was, however, released after being arrested. “I suspect him to be responsible for the attack, I have no suspicion on any other person,” he told a battery of media men who surrounded him at the MGM Hospital.

Warangal range DIG K. Lakshman Mohan and Superintendent of Police V. C. Sajjanar visited the girls at both the hospital.

Mr. Sajjanar said Swapnika was being shifted to the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) in Hyderabad.

About Mr. N. Chandra Babu Naidu,CEO of Cyberabad.

Hyderabad:Our unanimous choice for this maiden section on the Business personality of the month has been non other than Cyberabad's Hi-Tech CEO, Mr. N. Chandra Babu Naidu. In the entire 400 years of history of Hyderabad, every since Mohd. Quli Qutab Shahi built the landmark Charminar in 1591, Chandra Babu naidu since then, is the only personality to bring techno-fame to Hyderabad by establishing the Hi-Tech city which has put our city among the most sought after investor destination of India - a feat quite remarkable of politician in Indian today's pathetic batch of politicians.

No wonder this model Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh was cited as one of the top 50 stars of Asia by the Business week magazine and his efforts in promoting Information Technology in Hyderabad has been commended by several international magazines, including Time.The counrty's youngest Chief Minister, at 48, son of a farmer from Naravarapally District, an M.A. and Ph.D in Economics, Mr. Naidu is already a global name.In fact no other state is being marketed to investors the way A.P. is Multimedia presentations, information on CD-ROMs, personal interaction with Industrialists, and industry associations have become a part of Naidu's weekly schedule.Naidu's biggest coup is the decision of Microsoft to come to Hyderabad, thanks to the presentation he made to Bill Gates. Thereafter it has been very easy to convince other computer majors like IBM and Oracle. For all that Mr. Naidu has been done for the Hyderabad leap towards Information Technology, we at Reach-out Hyderabad along with all our site visitors, do acknowledge his vision and hereby given him a standing ovation while declaring him as our choicest Maiden business Personality of the month.

Sahyadri Kala Utsav ends

IN SYNC: Folk artistes performing the Kolatam dance at the Sahyadri Kala Utsav in Adilabad on Thursday.

ADILABAD: Guruji Ravinder Sharma of Adilabad Kala Ashram was on Thursday chosen as mukhiya or head of the working group called panches of Rashtriya Karigar Panchayat (RKP) during the concluding session of the three-day Sahyadri Kala Utsav.

Also elected unanimously as panches were Yogendra Kumar of Chirala in Andhra Pradesh, Prabhudas of Melghat in Maharashtra, Kisanbhai of Bardoli in Gujarat, Anand Ballabh Joshi of Kausani in Uttaranchal and Nirmala of Muzaffarpur in Bihar.

The three-day festival of artisans saw planners and thinkers burn midnight oil to chalk strategies for the betterment of traditional artisans and craftsmen.

Eminent personalities in the field like Dr. Mahesh Sharma, a former Chairman of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, Dr. Vibha Gupta, president of the RKP and the Magan Sangrahalay at Wardha in Maharashtra, Sunil Deshpande of Sampoorna Bamboo Kendra of Melghat, Prabhakar Pusadkar of Magan Sangrahalay, Basantbhai and Ram Kumar conveners of RKP and many others from associated with working for traditional artisans.

Dr. Mahesh Sharma stressed upon periodical review of the functioning of the RKP for charting out a new course continuously.

About 700 artisans from different States in the country came to participate in the convention.

Children’s fare

Green Park hotel will conduct a special event on Friday afternoon for children and their parents at its The Meadows.

Titled ‘Naughty but nice’, the event promises unlimited fun, games, gifts, magic show, and unlimited food with a specially designed menu, a live band and dance floor. The menu includes vegetarian soft noodles, Manchuria, American Chowpsy, assorted vegetarian Sezwan style, Punjabi samosa, vegetable puff, assorted dosas, chat counter, pav bhaji counter, ice creams, hot jalebi, soft drinks and much more, according to unit head of the hotel K.M. Rao.

US polls: First result from New Hampshire goes in favour of Obama

ASHINGTON: Democrat Barack Obama confidently sensed victory in his historic bid to become America's first black president as he wrapped up a

Barack Obama waves as he enters a rally at the Prince William County in Manassas. (AP Photo) More Pictures

marathon two-year campaign. Republican John McCain however, stubbornly promised an underdog upset in Tuesday's election. ( Watch )

Obama came up a winner in the first official results announced early on Tuesday from two small towns in New Hampshire, where a tradition of casting the first votes on election day lives on.

Obama defeated McCain by a count of 15 to 6 in Dixville Notch, and the town of Hart's Location reported 17 votes for the Democrat, 10 for the Republican and two for write-in Ron Paul. Both towns had favored George W Bush in the last two elections.

The rivals, separated by 25 years and a seemingly unbridgeable political gulf, had agreed on one thing during the longest presidential campaign in US history- their promise to slam the door on the era of George W. Bush.

But they were deeply at odds over how to fix the nation's crumbling economy and end the 5 1/2-year war in Iraq, the issues that sent Bush's job approval plummeting to a record low at the end of his 8-year presidency.

Record numbers of Americans were expected at polling stations across the US adding their ballots to 29 million citizens who had already voted in 30 states. The early vote tally suggested an advantage for Obama, with official statistics showing that Democrats voted in larger numbers than Republicans in North Carolina, Colorado, Florida and Iowa. All four states voted for Bush in 2004.

Sad news overshadowed the campaign on Monday when Obama announced the death of his grandmother, whose personality and bearing shaped him deeply. Madelyn Payne Dunham was 86 when she died of cancer late Sunday in Hawaii.

``She's gone home,'' Obama said, tears running down both cheeks as tens of thousands of rowdy supporters at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte grew silent as he announced Dunham's death. The family said a private ceremony would be held later.

He explained to the North Carolina audience how Dunham inspired his campaign by her lifetime of hard work and sacrifice.

``In just one more day we have the opportunity to honor all those quiet heroes all across America,'' Obama said. ``We can bring change to America to make sure their work and their sacrifice is honored. That's what we're fighting for.''

Obama wrapped up his campaign by speaking to a crowd estimated at more than 70,000 people in Manassas, Virginia, near the site of the first major battle of the American Civil War that ended slavery, before heading home to Chicago to await the election returns.

McCain, a 72-year-old four-term Arizona senator, ended the contest on Monday with a frantic and grueling dash through several traditionally Republican states still not securely in his camp or even leaning to Obama.

McCain stopped in Florida, Virginia, Indiana, New Mexico and Nevada. And he again passed through Pennsylvania, the only state that voted Democratic in 2004 where he still hoped for a win.

McCain, too, promised to turn the page of the era of George W. Bush and said he sensed an upset in the making.

Cong, TDP poll surveys predict Chirudoom

HYDERABAD: Internal surveys by the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party

apparently seem to claim that Chiranjeevi may draw crowds, but would not be able to transform them into votes. Reliable sources in the two major political parties say that the Congress survey points to the ruling party getting at least 137 seats, while the TDP survey points to N Chandrababu Naidu’s party getting around 140 seats.

However, the respective surveys seem to say that the entry of Chiranjeevi has voters polarised on caste basis, particularly in Krishna, East and West Godavari districts. According to the TDP survey, Kapus (including the sub-castes like Balijas, etc) constitute about 22 per cent of the total population, but it is unlikely that Chiranjeevi would get all the votes of his community.

"Chiranjeevi has die-hard fans in the Congress and the TDP, as has been indicated by the crowds that he attracted in the north coastal region, but our survey indicates that all this will not transform into votes for him," said TDP parliamentary party leader K Yerranaidu.

Both the surveys also seem to warn the respective parties that first-time voters will be attracted to Chiranjeevi. Because of the entry of Chiranjeevi, the surveys indicate that Kammas, who constitute about nine per cent of the state’s population, are preferring the TDP as their first choice and, ironically, Congress as their second. Reddys, who constitute about eight per cent of the population, appear to prefer the Congress as their first choice and, again, ironically, the TDP as their second preference.

Women, the Backward Classes and upper castes, have been found by the surveys as ‘undecided’ and possibly tilt towards Chiranjeevi. Hence the surveys command the Congress and the TDP to immediately focus on these sections.

The TDP survey sees price rise, alleged corruption in irrigation and housing projects as going against the Congress, while the ruling party survey points to same development schemes, rural employment guarantee scheme, the Rs 2-akg rice scheme and ‘pavlavaddi’ as the sops that would fetch the party the 137 seats.

However, both the surveys left a margin of 30 to 40 seats either way depending on the possible alliances that can materialise between the Congress on the one side and the TDP on the other. "The TRS, T Devender Goud and the Left parties will have a say on these 30 to 40 seats depending on which of the two main parties they sail along with," said one leader.

UNLIKELY HERO?

Cong survey gives the party 137 sure seats while TDP survey claims the party will win in 140
Both surveys wary of first-time voters’ tilt to the actor

NTP ‘declares’ Telangana State

HYDERABAD: As the Nava Telangana Party (NTP) ‘declared creation’ of Telangana State here on Sunday, its cadre went berserk and damaged four RTC buses in front of the Chikkadpally police station where party president T. Devender Goud was held.

Mr. Goud and 350 NTP supporters were taken into custody by the police as they tried to proceed to the Secretariat from Indira Park following the ‘self-declaration’ of the State. The party gave a call to a large gathering which participated in a public meeting at Indira Park to change the name of ‘Andhra Pradesh Secretariat’ to ‘Telangana State’.

Mr. Goud boarded a packed open truck to Chikkadpally police station but the rest of his supporters were shifted to the Gandhinagar police station. The refusal of the NTP president to leave the station until all those detained at Gandhinagar were released triggered trouble.

The activists who were set free at Gandhinagar gathered at Chikkadpally and pelted stones on buses, injuring one of the drivers. The mob also staged a dharna and burnt an effigy of Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in front of the police station, paralysing traffic on the main thoroughfares. Mr. Goud left the station only after the tension subsided.

Earlier, Mr. Goud asked the crowd to replace the name ‘Andhra Pradesh’ with Telangana on the signboards at all government offices since the new State had come into being. The letters ‘AP’ should be replaced with ‘TG’ on the number plates of all vehicles which should also bear stickers embossed with the name and map of Telangana. The ‘declaration’ of the State was made amid release of 10 pigeons, each symbolising a district of Telangana, by veteran leader Konda Laxman Bapuji.

Yuva Garjana will focus on corruption: TDP leader

Kakinada: The district in-charge of Telugu Desam Party’s ‘Yuva Garjana’, Y.B. Rajendra Prasad, has exuded confidence that the programme will earn a place in history as an unprecedented event in spite of the Congress attempts to create problems. “The government has, for instance, refused to supply the full number of RTC buses requested by the TDP whereas the RTC was made to deploy a huge number of its vehicles at nominal charges during the visits of AICC president Sonia Gandhi. The TDP is, however, undeterred by such cheap tactics which are meant to undermine its efforts to expose the government’s wrongdoings,” he said.

Dig at YSR

Addressing media persons here on Sunday, Mr. Rajendra Prasad said that the TDP would explain to people, particularly youth on whose shoulders lied the burden of protecting the State’s resources in future, how the Congress leaders were achieving personal advancement in collusion with contractors.

“Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has earned the dubious distinction of being one of the most corrupt Chief Ministers in the country and he was able to sustain his goodwill in the party high-command by sending money bags,” Mr. Prasad alleged.

“The Yuva Garjana will focus on corruption in high places, which has become the bane of people of Andhra Pradesh. Besides, the Congress has failed to keep many promises it had made during the 2004 elections. To compound the people’s woes, it sought to promote projects like the coastal corridor and Special Economic Zones which were obviously intended to benefit capitalists. The people will be therefore asked to exercise their choice properly and be not lured by the overtures of the ruling party,” Mr. Prasad added.

TDP district president N. Chinna Rajappa said nearly 40,000 party activists from the district were expected to take part in Yuva Garjana.

Bardhan-Naidu talks on third alternative , Breakfast meeting on alliances held at Telugu Desam Party president’s residence

Bardhan expresses anxiety over rise of divisive forces

Naidu emphasises cordial ties with Left on many issues

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-Photo: Praveen Kumar Vinjam

Playing host: CPI national general secretary A.B. Bardhan being welcomed by Telugu Desam president N. Chandrababu Naidu at his residence in Hyderabad on Wednesday.

HYDERABAD: Communist Party of India general secretary A. B. Bardhan on Wednesday emphasised the need for pooling in all the non-Congress and non- BJP forces on to a single platform.

Speaking to press persons briefly after a breakfast meeting with Telugu Desam president N. Chandrababu Naidu at the latter’s Jubilee Hills residence, Mr. Bardhan said that Mr. Naidu and he had discussed the political situation and the need for strengthening the third alternative political formation.

In the closed-door meeting, Telugu Desam Party sources said, Mr. Naidu made a presentation on his laptop to his guest and other senior party leaders Raja and S. Sudhakar Reddy, reportedly on the prospects in store, provided the TDP, Left parties and Telangana Rashtra Samithi go together in the Assembly elections.

Mr. Bardhan said, the country was facing a critical situation with communal riots breaking out at various places. Divisive activities were on the rise in the north as well as the south with people like Maharashtra Navanirman Sena’s Raj Thackeray raising their voices.

“It’s a serious situation and we discussed and shared our respective concern”.

On a humorous note

On forging an electoral alliance with TDP, Mr. Bardhan wondered why the media was so impatient when Mr. Naidu himself showed so much of patience.

Asked who was his better friend, Mr. Naidu or Chiranjeevi, he quipped, “My wife”.

Mr. Bardhan had met Mr. Chiranjeevi on Tuesday to seek his support for the third alternative.

To another question, he said there was no difference of opinion between the State and Central committees of the party over alliances.

On his part, Mr. Naidu said, he had an enduring relationship with Left parties in fighting issues like corruption, communalism and rising prices. “We will fight the Congress as it has brought a bad name to the country by entering into a nuclear deal with the United States.”

Weighing scale in IT canteen!

HYDERABAD: Employees of an Indian IT major in the city are a flummoxed lot these days. The new weighing scale in the canteen has left them confused and hungry. According to sources, the caterers to whom the canteen services are outsourced have started weighing food before it’s served.

“Earlier they never used to weigh the food and we got much more than what we are getting now,” says an employee under the condition of anonymity.

Disgusted

The practice which started recently has left the employees surprised and some disgusted.

“It’s so humiliating to stand there and watch as the food is weighed before it is served to us,” says another employee.

The company removed the scale on Friday after receiving complaints from its employees. “They don’t need the scale any more because they know how much to serve now,” alleges the employee. However the company officials maintain that this was done to ensure that the employee got his/her money’s worth and not to ‘ration’ food.

“We eat how much we are served, we can’t ask for second helping. For Rs.30 earlier we got three ‘parathas’ but now we are getting just two. The cost of ‘biryani’ has gone up by Rs.10, but the quantity hasn’t,” says another employee.

While employees allege that there was no second helping, officials at the company said that this wasn’t the case and that they can’t really control the amount of food being served as it’s completely in the hands of the vendors.

Others allege that the food committee which is supposed to supervise the quality and pricing has turned blind to their complaints. “The ‘chicken biryani’ doesn’t have any chicken in it,” complains M. Abhishek (name changed).

Owing to the fuel hike and inflation, other companies too have been forced to hike the cost of food.

The cost of meals has gone up by an average of Rs.5-Rs. 10. Many complain that the quality of food too has come down. “For a month or so, we have noticed a drop in the quality of food being served to us. Also the number of items being served too has come down,” says a software engineer working for Oracle.

“They are resorting to cost cutting measures at various ends, but the least they could have done was to spare the canteen,” laments M. Sreeja (name changed), working with Satyam. Though beverages and biscuits still remain free of cost in most of the IT companies, employees say that this too might not last too long.

Yuva Garjana: boost to Nandamuri family

GUNTUR: The Nandamuri family led by film star Balakrishna is the new hope for a majority of Telugu Desam Party supporters and second line of leaders in the district for giving a kick-start to restore its past glory.

Party leaders and supporters from Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts have taken ‘Yuva Garjana’ on November 5 as “the event” to give a boost to the party’s fortunes riding on the popularity of Balakrishna, Junior NTR and Tarakaratna.

Tarakaratna was open in his assertions in Nellore that Balakrishna was the man to look forward to for the future prospects of the TDP. Many leaders of the dominant community feel that TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu cannot be relied upon in the coming elections and the Nandamuri family could improve their chances of springing back to power.

Advani promised to bring Telangana bill, says Goud

NEW DELHI: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani has assured that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would introduce a bill for the creation of a separate Telangana State from the existing Andhra Pradesh immediately after coming to power in the coming Lok Sabha elections.

Nava Telengana Praja Party (NTPP) president T. Devender Goud, told The Hindu here on Tuesday, after meeting Mr. Advani, that the BJP was very much supportive of the formation of the separate State. Similarly NDA convenor and senior JD (U) leader George Fernandes and Rashtriya Lok Dal president Ajit Singh too said they were agreeable for Telengana.

Mr. Goud replied in the negative when asked whether BJP-NTPP electoral tie-up for the coming Assembly/Lok Sabha polls in Andhra Pradesh was discussed with Mr. Advani.

Mr. Goud, a former minister in the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government led by N. Chandrababu Naidu, quit the party and floated NTPP a few months ago following differences with Mr. Naidu on Telangana.

The main purpose of his Delhi visit was to make the Centre to introduce the bill before poll and mobilise support for it among the political parties.

Meanwhile Telangana Intellectuals Forum (TIF), a non-political organisation, has sought early introduction of the bill on Telangana in Parliament.

Man dies of heart attack as cop pulls out gun

HYDERABAD: In an intriguing case, a 55-year-old business man, P Ganesh, suffered a massive heart attack and died when Task Force personnel allegedly threatened him with a gun at his house at Hyderbasti in Secunderabad on Tuesday.

Though cases are reported to have been booked against the erring cops by their colleagues, top brass is learnt to have been trying to shield them.

According to an official release issued by commissioner of police B Prasada Rao, Ganesh and his son Raju were wanted in three cases relating to extortion registered at the Ramgopalpet police station.

"At 5.40 am, West Zone Task Force SI S Rajasekhar Reddy received credible information that Ganesh was at home. There was also information that he provided shelter to some Janashakti members in his house," the commissioner said. "The SI informed the businessman's family of the purpose of his visit, but Ganesh threatened the police and banged his head on the floor to injure himself. Realising the sensitivity of the situation, the SI advised the family to get Ganesh to the Task Force office for questioning," the release said.

However, the family members of Ganesh had an entirely different version. They alleged that the police threatened Ganesh to settle the property dispute amicably. "After an argument, one of them pulled out a revolver from his pocket," Mahankali ACP, Y Madhusudhan Rao said.

He said that Ganesh collapsed instantly as he saw the revolver and the three men walked away. Ganesh was immediately rushed to Yashoda Hospital in Secunderabad where he was declared brought dead.

Mahankali inspector of police A Prabhakar Rao said Ganesh's son Raju in his complaint claimed that his father was manhandled and threatened with a revolver by the Task Force personnel as a result of which he suffered a heart attack.

"Based on the complaint lodged by Raju, a case was registered under section 302 (Murder) of the IPC r/w section 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) and section 25 of the Arms Act," Prabhakar Rao said.

The bone of contention is Ganesh's 800 square yards of land located on Minister Road and one Arvind Srimal had been pressurising him to sell it. "The businessman's family claimed that Task Force personnel came to the house on behalf of Arvind," Prabhakar Rao said.

Strangely, in the official release the city police commissioner said Ganesh along with CS Kabra, Harish Jain and MP Gandhi owned a property (No 2-2-578) on Minister Road and Arvind Srimal and his wife Sumita Srimal purchased it from GPA holder Gandhi in 2005.

"Ganesh and the other partners disputed the sale claiming that the GPA given to Gandhi was cancelled in 1995. Both the parties approached court. Ganesh and other partners filed a complaint against Gandhi, Arvind Srimal and Sumita Srimal at the Ramgopalpet police station, but the case was closed as RC 59/08 due to lack of evidence," the release said.

Later, Ganesh and Raju reportedly threatened Arvind Srimal and "extorted" Rs 10 lakh and based on the complaint lodged by Arvind, the Ramgopalpet police registered a criminal case against Ganesh and Raju and remanded them in judicial custody. Another criminal case was registered against the father-son duo for employing Janashakti naxalite B Somaiah, who threatened Arvind to settle the dispute.

"Somaiah was arrested on March 10 at Paradise Hotel in Secunderabad and an 8 mm country-made pistol, 12 bore country-made gun and 10 live rounds were recovered from him. Based on the confession of Somaiah, the Ramgopalpet police registered a case against him and Ganesh. Ganesh and Raju had been absconding since then," the press release added. However, according to the Mahankali police, the victim's family members claimed they were very much available in the city.

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Praja Rajyam president blasts previous governments

The Praja Rajyam Party president, Chiranjeevi on Friday attacked the previous governments for not considering the interests of the farmers while establishing Special Economic Zones. Expressing concern over the plight of the farmers displaced by Pharma SEZ, he said SEZs are essential as they spawn industrial development, it cannot be done by depriving poor farmers land. He said that more than 56 out of 250 SEZs in the country were in the State and regretted that they were carved out by taking fertile lands of the poor farmers. He noted that it is not a real development.

Chiranjeevi has spent more than three hours in the area where the government has acquired nearly 1,000 acres of land in Polepalli, Mudireddipalle and Gundlagadda Thanda in Jedcherla mandal for the establishing SEZ during 2001-02 where the two companies were putting up their facility and only 153 acres was in use. He visited the houses of three displaced families.

Speaking at an impressive gathering from atop a Tata Innova under a blazing sun, he drew the applause when he stated that the farmers had become labourers after acquisition of their land. Asserting that his party would stand by the displaced farmers led by the Polepalli SEZ Vyatireka Samithi, he demanded that the government allocate alternative land and houses to them apart from paying money in tune with the rising land prices. Without naming any party, he said that it was a pity that the previous governments were overlooking the interests of the farmers and promised if the party is voted to power, he said that SEZs and development will be so integrated that none can point an accusing finger.

This is the second major public visit by Chiranjeevi in recent times. It may be recalled that Chiranjeevi interacted with Sircilla handloom worker families recently. Chiranjeevi and his party is getting ready for the road show that begins in first week of October. A modified Mitsubishi 1095 that acts as the party ratham is in its final touches.

TRS seeks SHRC to book cases against MP Rajagopal

The TRS has sought the intervention of the State Human Rights Commission in booking a criminal case against the Congress MP, L Rajagopal following injuries to a TRS workers in a road accident involving in a road accident in Nizamabad on Thursday. The party informed the SHRC Chairman, B Subhashan Reddy on Friday that it was petitioning the Commission as it did not trust the State Government to do justice in the matter.

The delegation of TRS led by its floor leader E Rajender and MLA T Harish Rao alleged that the government deliberately delayed booking a case against the MP. They expressed fears of escalation of violence if action was not initiated against him. Meanwhile, the police picked up 12 persons suspected involvement in the vandalism on the Lanco office and released them later after finding them to be innocent.

The TRS organized a black badge demonstration near the Telangana Martyrs Memorial in front of the Assembly to protest against Rajagopal identifying the party with terrorists and anti social elements in an interview to a private TV Channel on Friday morning. Rajender and Harish Rao complained the SHRC that Rajagopal was provoking TRS activists for the last three years with anti Telangana statements. SHRC Chairman Justice Subhashan Reddy issued orders to the Nizamabad SP and Assistant Commissioner of Police of Banjara Hills to furnish reports on the incidents by Friday next.

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TDP members stage dharna at ZP meeting

on-payment of arrears to farmers by sugar factory management alleged

Zilla Parishad chief promises action if factory does not meet deadline

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— Photo: Mohd. Arif

highlighting an issue: TDP members protesting at the ZP meeting in Sangareddy on Saturday.

SANGAREDDY: The zilla parishad general body meeting held here on Saturday presided over by Chairman M. Balaiah witnessed some disturbances, with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) members sitting in the podium, supported by members of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS).

Soon after the meeting was convened, which District Collector Piyush Kumar and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Y. Upender Reddy also attended, the TDP floor leader B. Venkataiah raised the issue of non-payment of arrears to farmers by a private sugar factory management at Zaheerabad, for which farmers agitated a few days back. He demanded that the general body meeting pass a resolution to attach the assets of the factory if it fails to pay the arrears as promised — first phase before September 30 and remaining before October 10. TDP MLA M. Hanumantha Rao said that as this was related to farmers, the resolution should be passed immediately. He was supported by TRS MLA T. Harish Rao. However, some of the Congress members objected for that, supported by Congress MLA Sunitha Lakshma Reddy. At this point, TDP members rushed to the podium and sat there for sometime.

Special session

Mr. Balaiah intervened and promised to convene a special session to pass such a resolution if the factory management fails to pay arrears. On the crop loss in the recent rains and floods, the district Collector said that already a Central team has visited the affected areas. The compensation would be paid to the farmers once it was released by the government. Admitting there were some lapses, Mr. Piyush Kumar said all problems would be addressed at the constituency level meeting being held by him. Referring to the frequent power problems in the district, Mr. Harish Rao urged that the meeting should pass a resolution for High Voltage Distribution System (HVDS) with Rs. 150 crore. “Why negligence in Medak district when such systems are being established at Kadapa and Anatapur with Rs. 300 crore and Rs. 200 crore respectively?” he asked energy department officials.

The district Collector faced some embarrassing moments for sometime as none of the irrigation officials were present at the meeting.

Boy dies as traffic stops for Cheif Minister YSR’s convoy

VIJAYAWADA: Stoppage of vehicular traffic by the police to make way for Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s convoy is believed to have led to the death of a six-year-old boy, who was on his way to hospital for treatment of jaundice, here on Saturday.

Giri Lakshmi Narayana (6), a native of Eedepalli village near Machilipatnam, was on his way to the NRI Hospital at Chinakakani in Guntur district along with his father Srinivasa Rao, a farmer. Mr Rao brought his son to the city from his village in a car and tried to admit him to Nagarjuna Hospital at Kanuru, but the doctors refused to admit him on the grounds that his condition was serious.

Turns unconscious

When their vehicle reached Patamata, the police stopped it as the Chief Minister was scheduled to visit Patamatalanka area between 11.30 a.m. and 12 noon to call on the bereaved families of Congress MLA Chanumolu Venkata Rao and Chennupati Seshagiri Rao, husband of former Congress MP Ch. Vidya. By then, the boy became unconscious and his father reportedly made several requests to the police to allow his vehicle to go to the hospital. Even before the traffic could be cleared, the boy breathed his last and the shell-shocked father took the body back to his village. The police said there was no need to register a case, as it was a medical problem.

There were massive traffic jams at every junction till the evening, with the entire police force remaining focussed on the Chief Minister’s visit. As a result, people began to violate road rules and traffic signals resulting in confusion. Vehicular movement was streamlined only in the evening.

AP tops in effective implementation of rural job plan: Study

AP tops in effective implementation of rural job plan: Study

Hyderabad (PTI): Andhra Pradesh has topped the list of states in the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS).

An independent study on the implementation of NREGS, conducted by the National Consortium of Civil Society Organisations, has ranked Andhra Pradesh above all other states, a release from the Chief Minister's Office said.

"The main finding of the study is that the programme is being implemented in the state in an effective manner by employing information technology tools, techniques and through a robust social audit. Andhra has emerged as the role model in successful implementation of the programme," the release said.

All stages of the programme - from registration of workers to issue of job cards, preparation of work estimates, muster rolls and payment to workers - have been fully computerised. "This has ensured prompt payment to workers through an online system, thus avoiding any leaks," it said.

The study, co-authored by Mihir Shah and Pramathesh Ambasta, noted that "since the computerised system is integrated end-to-end, any work registered is alive, status visible and amenable to tracking."

"Delays at any stage could thus be identified and corrected immediately. The free availability of information on the website also facilitates public scrutiny, thus engendering greater transparency and better social audit."

Around 30,000 trained village youths conducted the social audit and have already covered 1.2 crore people, the release added.

Andhra Pradesh is called the "Rice Bowl of India" is a state in southern India.Andhra Pradesh is the 4th largest state in India by area and population It is bordered by Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, Orissa in the north, the Bay of Bengal in the East, Tamil Nadu to the south and Karnataka to the west. . It is the largest and most populous state in Southern India. Two major rivers, the Godavari and the Krishna run across the state. Historically this land was known as Andhraapatha, Andhra Desa, Andhraavani, Andhra mandalamu, Andhra vishaya.



Andhra Pradesh(AP) can be devided into three regions, namely Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema and Telangana. Andhra Pradesh has 23 districts: Adilabad, Anantapur, Chittoor, Kadapa, East Godavari, Guntur, Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, Krishna, Kurnool, Mahbubnagar, Medak, Nalgonda, Sri Potti Sreeramulu Nellore, Nizamabad, Prakasam, Rangareddy, Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Warangal and West Godavari.

Telugu is the regional and official language of the state, spoken by (84.86%)of the population. Telugu is the second largest spoken language in India. The major linguistic minority groups in the state include the speakers of Urdu (7.86%) and Hindi (2.65%).