State Opting For Decentralisation: Mopidevi

AMARAVATI: Minister for marketing, fisheries and animal husbandary Mopidevi Venkata Ramana said that decentralisation of administration and development weren't the main focus areas of Sri Krishna Committee during the Congress regime, Sivaramakrishnan Committee during Chandrababu Naidu regime and GN Rao Committee report and the recent Boston Committee report for rectifying the mistakes done earlier.

Addressing the media here on Saturday, he said earlier, development was concentrated just in Hyderabad. Real estate dealers and industrialists had all moved o Hyderabad for their business purposes. The people of North coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema had on several occasions conducted agitations for their uplift to no avail. Keeping all these issues in view, all the committees have recommended decentralisation of administration and development, said the minister.

The high-power committee would give dirrections based on the recommendations of all thesd committees. It is a known fact that Boston Consultancy is a world-renowned firm. The state government does not want to repeat the mistakes done by the previous government. Hence it was taking the advice of all these committees and that it why it was being considered to have legislative capital in Amaravati, High Court in Kurnool and the administrative capital in Visakhapatnam, said the minister.

It is also a known fact that Chandrababu Naidu had made all his henchmen purchase lands in the capital region of Amaravati even before the decision of locating the capital was announced. Naidu would have done justice to the farmers of the region if he really had the integrity to do so. While it was estimated that Rs 10 lakh crores would be needed for capital construction, only Rs 5,800 crores was spent for the temporary constructions by the Naidu government, the minister said.

Lands were forcibly gabbed from the farmers by Naidu. The present government would go all the way out to rescue the farmers of Amaravati region, he added.

With the sincere efforts of Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy the 22 fishermen of AP who were captured by the Pakistan Coast Guard last year on the Gujarat coast are going to be released by Pakistan government on the Wagha border on January 6, said the minister

He said Jagan Mohan Reddy had met the families of the 22 captured fishermen during his padayatra of the state and immediately after taking charge as the Chief Minister he had pursued the matter with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the external affairs ministry in New Delhi. He also got Rajya Sabha member Vijayasai Reddy also to pursue the matter.

Out of the 22 fishermen, 15 are from Srikakulam, five from Vizianagaram and five others are from East Godavari district. The previous TDP government had done nothing to get the fishermen released. Since the Chief Minister was informed that the families of the captured fishermen were in dire straits, he had sanctioned an amount of Rs 4,500 to each family which is being paid every month and also helped them in getting loans.

After the YSRCP government having done for the captured fishermen and worked hard to get their release, it was wrong on the part of the TDP leaders to claim that the fishermen were going to be released because of the efforts made by them, the minister said.

However, only 20 of the 22 fishermen are going to be released by Pakistan government. Due to lack of proper information two fishermen belonging to East Godavari district would be released after a month. The released fishermen would be sent home after thorough medical examination, the minister said.

The Chief Minister has been very keen on reaching out to the fishermen families for which he has introduced a scheme called YSR Matsyakara Nestam by proving them Rs 10,000 during the lean season.