Hyderabad: The office of the advisers to the common Governor for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh is still having teething problems and is yet to become fully functional.
Though the Centre had appointed the advisers in June 2014 to assist the Governor by giving technical advise and practical solutions for solving problems that would arise in both states, it is yet to extend logistics and manpower support to them.
The Centre has incorporated Section 8 under the AP Reorganisation Act which envisages special responsibilities to the Governor for the security of life, liberty and property of all those who reside in such area.
In particular, the responsibility of the Governor shall extend to matters of law and order, in-ternal security and security of vital installations, and management and allocation of government buildings in the common capital area.
The Act specifies that the judgment of the Governor with regard to his special responsibilities is unquestionable.
The Centre has provided two advisers to the Governor under the Act to discharge his special responsibilities for a period of 10 years for the purposes of administration of the common capital area on and from the Appointed Day.
A.K. Mohanty, former DGP of the combined st-ate of AP, and former IAS officer A.P.V.N Sarma were appointed as advisers. Mr Mohanty is to advise on matters related to law and order while Mr Sarma is to look after revenue matters.
Sources close to the advisers’ office, which is located in the Raj Bhavan, however, revealed that the office was currently functioning with skeleton staff that included two drivers, two attendants and two personal secretaries and a deputy secretary.
They pointed out that the existing staff was not sufficient to carry out the statutory functions as prescribed in the Act.
As per the Act, the Governor has to refer the representations, complaints or suggestions that are made by either individuals or political parties including the party in power with regard to the problems that they are facing in the common capital as well as the functioning of institutions that are listed in the 10th Schedule of the Act.
The issues which had recently come up with regard to transfer of funds from the labour department and changing of names of certain institutions and corporations which are listed in the 10th Schedule are supposed to be referred to the advisers, but since the office is yet to be fully functional, the Governor himself took the initiative to solve the issues, sources added.
