BJP attacks Congress for ‘late realization of Andhra Pradesh’s problems’

New Delhi: Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu accused Congress of having belated realisation of the problems facing residual Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu said the main challenge before residual Andhra Pradesh is a huge revenue deficit and it requires a special package for backward region, tax concession for rapid industrialisation and special grants for healthcare and education.

Referring to Congress president Sonia Gandhi's letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a special package for Seemandhra, Naidu said "I am happy that Congress party seems to have realised people of residuary state of Andhra Pradesh have a tough task of rebuilding the state from scratch."

However, he termed it as "late realisation" and said "they (UPA) had said they have done the ground work. I have not found any work than giving promises. Promises can be given any time but what about performances?

"Had Congress and UPA have done the right thing at the right time, the present situation would not have arisen. This is the point I want to make today," Naidu said on Wednesday.

With several institutions concentrated in and around Hyderabad, Naidu stressed on creating parallel institutions.

"We have to create parallel institutions in that state. My party has been insisting from day one that even before the (Telangana) Bill was passed, special package and tax concessions should have been included in the Act but this was not done by the then government and the reasons are best known to them", he said.

Taking on the previous Congress-led government, he said "they had nine years time...if they had political will and convictions, they could have taken steps to create some of these institutions before the partition of the state so that people of both regions would have been happy. They need to explain to the people why they have not done it."

Naidu said the Prime Minister has agreed to make a statement on giving special category status and concession for the state.

"Our government led by Modi is actively seized of the issue and we will do the needful without much loss of time for the benefit of both states", he said.

He also said there will be no discrimination on the basis of political affiliation of any region.