Andhranews

Anantapur, Sept. 1: The groundwater reserves in the district are depleting considerably. People could only utilise the available groundwater reserves and there is no scope to improve their position.
If the same situation continues and the people did not make justified use of water, the district would soon turn a desert, opine scientists.
People started using the groundwater more than what is required and this led to the depletion in groundwater reserves.

The scientists expressed fear that the government is not taking any steps to safeguard the groundwater reserves in the district and the geographical condition has become a cause of concern. Severe drought conditions persist in the district as the use of water is higher than the demand and the situation is prevailing in more than 27 mandals in the district.

Some mandals among them are in the agriculture minister N. Raghuveera Re-ddy’s home constituency. The groundwater levels are depleting as they are being utilised for agricultural purposes in the absence of irrigation facilities. The groundwater reserves are almost come to a naught in at least two mandals.

A survey on groundwater reserves was conducted in the district in 2001 and 2004. As per the survey the water consumption has gone up considerably than previous years. The problem of depletion of groundwater reserves was found in only six mandals in 2001, while the number has gone up to 27 mandals in 2004.

During the survey held in 2004, it was noticed that there was 45,825 hectometres of groundwater where irrigation facilities were available. Of them 13,862 hectometres are being utilised for various sectors. However, the groundwater reserves in other regions there was about 98,500 hectometres of water. Of them 95,329 hectometres of water is being used by the people in the absence of irrigation resources.

As there was no adequate rainfall, there was no source of improvement in the groundwater potentiality. In 2001 survey it was found that 185 villages were utilising higher amount of water from groundwater resources. However, the number has gone up to 385 villages during 2004 survey.

Tirupati, Sept. 1: Dr Hanumantha Rao, a devotee from Karimnagar, suggested, the TTD executive officer to provide training to the priests in Padmavathi temple in Tiruchanoor on how to perform rituals, during ‘Dial your EO programme’ on Friday.

Mr Hanumantha Rao said that he had purchased a ticket for Kumkumarchana at the temple but realised that the priests do not know how to perform the puja. Reacting to his advise, the EO assured that such incidents would not happen in future as they had already begun a training programme in their in-house training centre.

When asked about the TTD promise to provide Rs 2,000 for temples which have no revenue to carry out daily rituals, the EO, A.P.V.N. Sarma, said that they would implement the scheme shortly. Reacting to a question from Radhakrishna of Tirupati, the executive officer promised to consider distributing laddus to the devotees participating in sevas at Srinivasa Mangapuram as is the practice at Tiruchanoor and Tirumala.

Rajahmundry, Sept. 1: The district administration is facing an embarrassing situation with the newly-elected ZPTC and MPTC members and sarpanches instigating the villagers to raise objections over the distribution of compensation in order to establish their identity as well show their prowess to their rival groups in the flood-hit villages in Amalapuram division of East Godavari district.

Due to the recent floods to Godavari river, there was a breach to the river bund at Sanepallilanka and a few minor breaches to canals causing inundation of 159 villages in 16 mandals affecting thousands of villagers in the division.

After initial hiccups, the district administration geared up its machinery and started shifting the affected villagers to safety and set up relief camps and supplied food through community kitchens. As the flood water started to recede, the district administration deployed its officials to carry out preliminary enumeration to find out the extent of damage. Given the enormity of the damage, the government has come up with a relief package.

Accordingly, the district administration announced compensation of Rs 2,000 for a household which suffered full damage to its house and Rs 1,200 for partly damaged houses. In addition, Rs 1,000 was announced for each household to help them purchase utensils and clothes.

For those whose houses were submerged in flood waters, the government announced a relief to the tune of Rs 750. But many villagers started to demand payment of either Rs 2,000 or Rs 1,200 similar to those who suffered either full or partial damage to their houses at the instigation of the newly- elected local body representatives.

Almost every day, the irate villagers lay seize to an mandal revenue officer office or gherao visiting officials with a demand for inclusion of their names also in the list of those who suffered either full or partial damage.

Telugu Desam (TD) activists, with the support of party State vice-president Metla Satyanarayana, staged a dharna at MRO office alleging irregularities in distribution of relief on Friday. Amalapuram revenue divisional officer S. Kadalaiah said, “We have enumerated 18,178 fully damaged houses, 21,085 partially damaged houses, 29,911 houses as marooned and 453 tenants. We have given compensation to all of them. Of Rs 12.38 crores relief, we have already disbursed Rs 8.28 crores. Except one or two cases, there are no irregularities in either enumeration or distribution of relief.”

Amalapuram, Sept. 1: Godavari flood banks will be strengthened at a cost of Rs 550 crores to help them withstand high floods like the ones occurred in 1986. According to Rajahmundry Gautami sub- division deputy executive engineer Y. Narasimha Rao, who was entrusted the job to monitor the bridging of the Godavari bund breach at Sanepallilanka, the flood banks will be strengthened from the 1953 standards to 1986 standards as the river witnessed heavy discharge to the tune of 36 lakh cusecs of water at Dowleswaram barrage.

He said that though the discharge at the barrage was only 28 lakh cusecs of water in the recent floods, as the bunds were not strong, it caused a huge damage inundating several villages. He also said that out of 540 km length of the flood banks, already 130 km stretch was strengthened and added that in order to take up strengthening works of the flood banks, proposals were made.

He said there was also a necessity for strengthening vulnerable points on the bund at a cost of Rs 100 crores. Referring to the breach on Godavari bund at Sanepallilanka, he said that they were taking up construction of two ring bunds at a cost of Rs 90.24 lakhs in the breached portion stretching about 200 metres length.

Mr Narasimha Rao added that the flood bank would be constructed at a height of 14.5 metres and a BT road would be laid on the bund.

Nizamabad, Sept. 1: The death of a degree college student here on Friday morning due to the alleged negligence of a doctor of a private hospital caused tension. Alleging that Suneel Kumar, 22, a third year BSc student, was a victim of doctor’s negligence, his friends and other students ransacked the private hospital on the Nizamabad-Hyderabad road. The police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the students.

Nizamabad One Town sub-inspector Wahiduddin said that six students were arrested for attacking the hospital and they were remanded to judicial custody.
The One Town police also registered a case against Dr Ramakrishna, medical officer of Pragathi Hospital, based on a complaint lodged by Mr Palle Shankar, 45, father of Suneel Kumar. SI Wahiduddin said that the case was booked against the doctor under Section 304(A) IPC. Hospital managing director Dr Lakshma Reddy met district superintendent of police Mahesh Chandra Laddha and demanded action against the students.

Warangal, Sept. 1: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to hoist the national flag on September 17 to celebrate the Hyderabad Liberation Day in the region.Addressing a press conference here on Friday, district BJP president Gujjula Premender Reddy said that as the State government is reluctant to celebrate the Hyderabad Liberation Day officially, the party has decided to hoist the tricolour on its own. “Even if the government prevents us from hoisting the national flag, we will go ahead and would celebrate the Liberation Day in a befitting manner,” he said.

He said that it was perplexing as to why the successive governments in the State were afraid of celebrating the Liberation Day officially.
The BJP leader stated that his party had already instructed the village level party workers to celebrate the Liberation Day as it was the actual Independence Day for the region’s people.

Former BJP MLA M. Dharma Rao said that the erstwhile Hyderabad State people suffered a lot in the hands of Razakars and they made a lot of sacrifices to liberate the region. “The Hyderabad liberation movement has got a pride of place in the world history as it involved commoners in overthrowing then rulers,” he said.

He argued that in order to honour the Hyderabad liberation struggle, it was important to celebrate the day officially similar to the Independence Day. Mr Dharma Rao also pointed out that the governments in Karnataka and Maharashtra allow the celebrations in the districts which were part of the erstwhile Hyderabad State.

Responding to a query, State BJP vice-president G. Ramakrishna Reddy said that his party would intensify its stir for separate Telangana State from November. “Our party will not ally with the TRS as it was still part of the United Progressive Alliance,” the BJP leader added.

Warangal, Sept. 1: The District Congress Committee (DCC) on Friday blamed CPI(M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu for making “baseless” allegations against the State government on Jalayagnam.
Addressing a press conference at the Congress Bhavan here, DCC president Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy alleged that Mr Raghavulu was trying to get some publicity by making wild allegations against the ruling party.

Ridiculing the statement of Mr Ragha-vulu on linking the Bhupalpally Thermal Power Plant to the Devadula project, Mr Ramana Reddy explained that in reality there was no link between the thermal plant and the Devadula project. “The CPI(M) leader is making allegations without verifying the facts and figures on irrigation projects and other projects launched by the Congress government,” he alleged.

The DCC chief also found fault with the statements of Mr Raghavulu on Devadula project’s efficacy. “The Congress government had allocated huge funds and has expedited the project and it was only getting delayed due to the alarming flood situation in the Godavari river,” Mr Ramana Reddy added.

Reacting to the allegations levelled by the CPI(M) leader on the Gundlavagu project, Mr Ramana Reddy stated that there was no corruption in the project works as alleged by the former. “Due to the heavy floods in the Gundlavagu rivulet, the project got washed away. The government also had appointed an inquiry committee it to find out the reasons for the washout. The guilty will be punished,” he said.

The DCC president said that the compensation to the victims, who were affected by the Gundlavagu washout, would be given soon by the government.

Guntur/Bhimavaram, Sept. 1: The Anti-Corruption Bureau on Friday trapped two excise officials and a district registrar for corruption in two separate cases.

Excise deputy commissioner Veerendra Singh and assistant superintendent Veda Brahmam were caught while accepting bribes from suspended excise sub-inspector Mogini Koteswara Rao. The ACB simultaneously conducted raids on the properties of the tainted officials and their relatives.

ACB DSP Mahipal Reddy said that the excise officials had accepted Rs 5,000 each from Mr Koteswara Rao. “Fingerprints on the currency notes match that of the officials,” said the DSP. Mr Koteswara Rao was suspended for staging a protest before the excise commissionerate in Hyderabad 14 months ago.

The two officials, however, denied the charges and said that the cash was “planted” in their offices. In Bhimavaram, ACB sleuths trapped district registrar A. Prabhakara Rao while accepting Rs 5,000 as bribe for registration of 0.38 acre land from N. Narasaiah.

The registrar was caught at his office. The ACB inspectors said that raids were being conducted at the houses of the registrar in Bhimavaram and in Hyderabad. Eight months ago, Eluru district registrar was caught by the ACB while accepting a bribe and the person who complained to the ACB was a relative to Mr Narasaiah.

Vijayawada, Sept. 1: Andhra Pradesh is one of the four States shortlisted by the Central government for constructing the prestigious National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research in the next two years.

The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers had listed Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, West Bengal and Bihar for the next NIPERs that would promote research and education in the pharmaceutical field. The new institutes would come up with due amendments to the NIPER Act of 1998, the Ministry said. The Central government had identified Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Hajipur as suitable locations in the four States to have the NIPERs.

The NIPER would have graduate and post-graduate level along with research courses, including M. Tech and also MBA in pharmaceutical sciences. The courses offered here include, education and research on subjects like Medicinal Chemistry, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Analysis, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Pharmaceutics, Natural Products, Pharmaceutical Technology, Pharmaceutical Management and Pharmacy Practice. The extension of NIPER to Andhra Pradesh is seen as a boon to the pharmaceutical industry in the State.

A private industrial house has offered to provide the required 70 acres of land for the institute. “We are ready to provide the land. Such a research centre will help the industry go global,” noted industrialist Gokaraju Gangaraju told this correspondent.

Vijayawada, Sept. 1: The State government will not privatise the State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) and it has no plans to privatise the routes, asserted minister for transport and cooperation Kanna Lakshminarayana.

Interacting with mediapersons after inaugurating the extended building of the transport department on Friday, Mr Lakshminarayana said that a section of the media was spreading false news and thereby creating confusion among the employees and the people.

He said that the Congress government had taken steps to improve the performance of the APSRTC and achieved a profit of over Rs 145 crores since it took over. He said that the government has more such plans to improve the performance of the APSRTC and make it a viable institution.

The minister brushed asi-de allegations of privatisation and said that it was all the creation of the Telugu Desam leaders. He said that the APSRTC was pushed into heavy losses. He said that the TD leaders, particularly former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, had no right to point an accusing finger at the Congress government on this issue.

Mr Lakshminarayana said that the previous TD government had invited applications for privatisation of 194 routes across the State. The APSRTC had received several applications in 2001 from prospective transport agencies. He said that the Congress government had sent the proposal to the Central government for a decision.

Following this, he said the Central government had given clearance for 104 routes, which would be open to private operators. This was all in continuation of the previous government’s policies, he said. The minister said that the government had given Rs 370 crores to the APSRTC for 100 per cent reimbursement which had helped it to come out of losses. In addition to this, he said the government cleared the proposal for filling the posts of 49 assistant motor vehicle inspectors.

Khammam, Sept. 1: The executive meeting of the CPI(M) district unit here on Friday reiterated its demand for completion of Dummu-gudem lift irrigation sch-eme and bringing down the height of Polavaram Project.

CPI(M) district secretary K. Sambasiva Rao said that people in over 15 mandals in the district were rendered homeless due to the floods to river Godavari. While the farmers have lost the crops, the agriculture labourers have lost their mandays, he said and wanted the government to take up rehabilitation of the flood victims on a war-footing.

He blamed the district administration for neglecting the flood victims in many places. He said that the officials concentrated only on a few locations wh-ere the VIPs visited. He wanted the government to provide permanent houses for the flood victims, waive all loans and extend the flood bank up to Bhad-rachalam along the river. The CPI(M) leader asked the government to take up repairs to the fields which were damaged by the floods. These works are to be executed by involving the agriculture labourers, he said.

Mr Sambasiva Rao took strong exception to the inordinate delay in taking up works on the Dummugudem lift irrigation scheme. He said that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy had laid the foundation stone for the project four months ago, but works were yet to be initiated.

He wanted the government to complete the formalities and commence the works at the earliest. He said that the project, if completed, would prevent inundation of several areas along the river.
Referring to the Polava-ram project, the CPI(M) leader asked the government to bring down the height of the project to minimise the submerging area. He said that the CPI(M) had already made its stand clear on the project and maintained that it was the turn of the government to respond positively.

Lack of facilities hit ITDA schools

Paderu, Sept. 1: Almost all the 115 ashram schools under Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) in Agency areas of Vizag have no place for students to dine. A total of 33, 850 students in these schools have to eat in the open amid stray dogs and flies. Students stay in the hostels on the premises of the school in which they study.

There are 20,582 boys and 13,263 girls in these schools. The ministry of tribal welfare spends Rs 338 per month on a boy towards diet charges and Rs 428 for a girl. In addition, Rs 20 per per months is given to each boy and Rs 25 to each girl as cosmetic charges.

These students have all other facilities but not a proper place to eat as this correspondent noticed when he visited the Tribal Welfare Girls’ High School in Sri Krishnapuram in Paderu. The same is the situation in all the schools in the 11 Agency mandals.

“We do not have a place to eat in our hostel. So we eat in classrooms or playgrounds. We got used to it,” said a girl. For years, the ITDA sanctioned funds but never bothered to provide dining facilities. Every year, these funds are released under three categories — diet charges, notebooks and uniforms and for the development of the physical infrastructure. The ITDA had sanctioned around Rs 3 crores for 2006-07 to take up the repairss and to strengthen infrastructure.

When contacted, ITDA project officer A. Sharath said that the agency has taken up construction of dining halls and compound walls after conducting a survey. “Around Rs 3 crores were sanctioned this year for the construction of dining halls and other facilities. We are now constructing dining halls in 20 girls hostels on a priority basis,” said Mr Sharath.

Visakhapatnam, Sept. 1: CPI State secretary K. Narayana and party floor leader in Assembly Chada Venkat Reddy gave an ultimatum to the government that their State council leaders and district party leaders along with the party workers in large numbers would enter Gangavaram village if the cases against Gangavaram fishermen and Left party leaders were not lifted in a week. It may be recalled that the police booked cases against some fishermen of the Gangavaram village and some Left party leaders and barred them from entering the village.

Taking serious objection to the cases, Mr Narayana said it was unfair that the same government which ensured the release of Gouru Venkat Reddy who was involved in a murder case was still imposing restrictions on the Left leaders at Gangavaram.

“They are not rowdies or mafia leaders. We are giving one week time to the State government to lift the cases, otherwise we all go en masse into the village. We are ready to face arrests,” said Mr Narayana.