AMARAVATI: Home Minister Mekathota Sucharita here on Tuesday said that the state government had released a GO on October 18 sanctioning Rs 2,263 crore to help the Agrigold victims who had deposits below Rs 20,000 each. Speaking at the YSR Congress party central office at Tadepalli, she said with the government aid 65% of the depositors would be benefited.

The Home Minister said Agrigold was established in 1995 with 32 lakh depositors from AP, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa, Chhatisgarh and Andaman and Nicobar islands and Rs 6,380 crore was collected from the depositors. As the deposits were not returned even after the expiry of the due date, the depositors booked cases against Agrigold in several police stations in the state.

Sucharita said as the deposits were not returned to victims started agitations all over the state and then the YSR Congress party had also supported the victims. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had met the Agrigold victims during padayatra of the state and included their demands in the party manifesto. The Chief Minister had in his first Cabinet meeting said the state government would sanction Rs 11,500 crore to the Agrigold victims and the latest GO sanctioning aid to them as part of it.

The Home Minister said that though the earlier TDP government had promised to go to the aid of small-time depositors, it had not done so. There is no precedent anywhere in the country that the government has come to the aid of depositors of a scam-ridden private company. It is only YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government that has gone to the rescue of the depositors and everybody can see that people are applauding the move. The depositors have requested that they would be very glad to receive the aid from the Chief Minister personally. She said this would be taken to his notice.

Sucharita also said that efforts are being made to seize Agrigold assets and hand them over to the court and soon the remaining victims of Agrigold would also be benefited.

In reply to the question that atrocities against women were increasing in the state, the Home Minister said a case of a girl being raped was reported from Dachepalli on October 19. The accused has been arrested and the government has agreed to meet the expenses of the girl for her education. The government is immediately taking action in such cases, she added.

In reply to a question, she said that the crime rate in the state has come down when compared to 2017.

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