Free Flow Of Liquor In AP Under TDP: YS Jagan

Machilipatnam: Leader of Opposition in Andhra Pradesh assembly and YSR Congress Party President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy asserted that despite the fact that the first file Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu signed after taking office was to shut down belt shops, the reality in Andhra Pradesh was something else. Speaking at a massive public meeting here this evening as part of his historic public outreach programme Praja Sankalpa Yatra, YS Jagan said that TDP was creating false publicity about political party alliances and asked people not to believe them.

Thanks to TDP, neither AP got Special Category Status nor did the youth gets jobs in the last four years under the TDP regime, said YS Jagan. One can understand the level of corruption prevalent in the state if one could recall the Dharma Poratam taken up by Chandrababu in Tirupati. "Local women are saying that if there were any honorary degrees for land grabbing, the TDP leaders can be awarded all the certificates. The TDP leaders have been grabbing land everywhere. They are not sparing even toilets and graveyards," he lamented.

YS Jagan said that Sivaleelamma, relative of late NTR's first wife Basava Tarakam met him to pour out her woes. She said, "Anna, we have a land which is under dispute with respect to its purchase and sale. Because we did not heed TDP leaders' advice, we were at the police station for four days. We would be at the police station during the day and either at home or lodge during the night. They harassed us without even considering we were women."

The Leader of Opposition recalled that his father late Dr YS Rajashekara Reddy had constructed one lakh houses for the poor, whereas Chandrababu had not even built a single house till date. In fact, people were saying that he has not even allotted land for them. The government has hiked the prices of land and are offering them to the poor, YS Jagan pointed out and added that only half of the amount was being contributed by the government while the other half was being written off as debt. He said that if YSRCP comes to power the party will construct a house for every poor and even get it registered for free.

YS Jagan said that during the YSR period, water was available for two crops in a year but under the Chandrababus rule water provision for even a single crop was difficult. Even if the farmers manage to produce paddy there is no minimum support price and there are no buyers. "There are no jobs in Bandar (Machilipatnam)." The population of the town has reduced by over 10,000 from 2011, because people are migrating to other places for livelihood, he said and recalled YSR's desire to develop this town.

The YSRCP President listed out various things that they would do if their party comes to power:

• We would build a port in the town and acquire only 4800 acres required for port construction;
• 75 per cent of jobs in the port would be for locals and a resolution in this regard would be passed in the state assembly;
• Fill up the 1,42,000 government jobs through APPSC;
• The jobs at village secretariat would be for locals only;
• Pension, ration cards, health and fee reimbursement would be done within 72 hours.

"All these would be applicable to all the poor in the state irrespective of their caste and party affiliations," he added.