Neta Natter | Revanth’s Never-ending Rescue Acts

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy added a cinematic touch to governance while addressing the Telangana Gazetted Officers Association this week, drawing a parallel between his daily routine and actress Jayaprada’s role in the 1976 Telugu classic ‘Anthuleni Katha’. He recalled the ‘never-ending story’ of the main lead Jayaprada who keeps putting off her marriage owing to family responsibilities; just as one crisis ends, another props up, pushing her back to the grind. This reflects his experience in steering a debt-ridden Telangana back on track after inheriting financial shambles from the previous BRS government. Revanth said his days unfold in much the same way as that of the movie’s protagonist, and that for the past two years he had not taken a single day of leave. Every night he thinks of resting, and every morning a new emergency demands his attention. He remarked that while the former chief minister K. Chandrashekar Rao rests after leaving behind a Rs.8 lakh crore debt, he must keep working to restore balance.

For Ramchander, black is the new saffron

Is black the new saffron? Or something like that? May be, if one were to go by Telangana BJP president N. Ramchander Rao who is being seen sporting a black shirt these days. To a question on his sartorial choice, Ramchander Rao was quick with his comeback. Blame the Congress, he said, its decisions are such that people have no option but to be in a state of constant protest.

The BJP leader’s list of what he called people-unfriendly decisions by the government include a ‘wallet ambush’ of auto-debiting from bank accounts for traffic challans, and the file-and-withdraw actions in the Supreme Court over AP’s Polavaram project extensions which according to him was ‘classic Tughlaq foolish comedy’. Ramchander Rao appears to have turned fashion choices into political firepower, pointing out that mourning bad policy can also be a daily display event.

Komatireddy finds friends disappearing

Politics is a hard game to be in. If you are down and fighting, it is often quite difficult to find allies standing with you. For roads and buildings minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, this reality check appeared to have slammed in with some visible force as he battled some defamatory reporting about him by a news TV channel. Despite Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy stepping in with some strict action on the news story, Komatireddy found himself alone in his own Nalgonda district with none of the senior leaders of the Congress coming to support him during the ordeal in stark contrast to some party leaders from other districts reacting and supporting him. Even more surprising was that those seen as stout followers of Komatireddy maintained a studied silence on the issue. Silence, as they say, sometimes speaks louder than words, and this seems to be case with Congress leaders in Nalgonda district.

Chinese manja is made in India. Why not cut the string?

It’s banned. It is not supposed to exist. But it does. And proves its existence in the most painful of ways to its victims. Everyone, from Hyderabad’s top cop to other officials, forest department and countless others, have been urging people to stay away from the killer ‘Chinese’ manja, a name the deadly glass coated nylon string has become popular with despite being produced within the country. A few cases here and there, some seizures and at the end of Sankranti festivities and the kite flying season, the attention fizzles out, before reviving the next year. Making one wonder if the campaign against the domestically produced ‘Chinese’ manja is more of a reflection of action taken and basking in a few marginal ‘successful’ seizures, or if there is a truly serious effort to end the menace. After all, if the deadly banned kite-flying nylon string is produced within the country, then it should be possible to cut the supplies if the authorities are serious about putting an end to this problem. But if the past and present are any indication, come next year’s Sankranti, the story might repeat itself.

Naidu’s harvest festival is bountiful

For Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, politics appears to be a 24x7 habit. After all, he has been at it for decades now. And festivals, far from being a break, are prime-time slots for some well-timed political messaging. As Sankranti came rolling in, Naidu chose the occasion for a teleconference with TD leaders and workers even as the rest of the state immersed itself in Sankranti gaiety.

The instructions were predictable but precise: tell people that every family is living happily under the present government. Welfare plus development, he reminded, equals good governance — a formula worth repeating between mouthfuls of ‘ariselu’. Then came the festive talking points including how 60 months of pending DA was cleared, water and tree-planting bills paid, and plans underway to reduce power charges which, he insisted, must reach the public without delay. After all, Sankranti is the festival of harvest and all in the TD were reminded that it was as good a time as any for some to reap the benefits of government work and bring home the fruits of labour.

Contributions from L. Venkat Ram Reddy, Neeraj Kumar Saibewar, P. Srinivas, Sanjay Samuel Paul, Md Ilyas

What worked to make Vizag’s air cleaner?

All it took was just a few weeks to turn the polluted air in Vizag from a ‘very poor’ to ‘satisfactory’ category, something that was announced with some apparent satisfaction by Vizag Telugu Desam MP M. Sribharat. Promptly praising this achievement was Jana Sena leader Dr Sandeep Panchakarla who attributed the cleaner air to the efforts of the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board and the leadership of Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan. When AQI levels hit the 300 mark last December, there was concern all around and prompted a prompt crackdown, a series of swift measures including fines on polluting vehicles, on industrial emissions, and awareness campaigns. By January 9 the AQI improved to 93. Even as the leaders of the partner parties are in a celebratory mood of sorts over this success, people have been left wondering if only penalties work when it comes to breathing cleaner air.

Janga finds man can propose, another man disposes

Service to God is generally supposed to be a selfless act, but every now and then one can slip in a request, or a prayer for something in return. While it is not known if senior TD leader Janga Krishnamurthy put in such a request to the Lord, his recent quitting from the TTD Trust Board could well mean that the wish was not granted. All he wanted was to fulflil a long-cherished dream of owning a guest house in Tirumala, but the land allotted in the name of a trust linked to him was flagged by Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan. Following this, the allotment was cancelled. Janga, who served on the Trust Board from the days of Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy to that of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, had earlier moved on after facing objections to his plan. After being brought back on the Board, he tried again but was stymied, prompting his resignation. Proving that old adage that while a man can propose, it still needs God’s will, failing which another man can dispose a proposal.

Jaganbbels? Rings a bell?

What does Nazi propaganda whiz Joseph Goebbels have to do with YSRC leader and former chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy? Everything, according to minister for information and public relations Kolusu Parthasarathy, who the other day called the former AP chief minister ‘Jaganbbels’, ostensibly for a misinformation campaign launched by him to stall AP’s development and to make the state unstable. Similar to Goebbels’ propaganda to glorify Adolf Hitler, Jagan Mohan Reddy and his team are targeting sentiments of the people in the state to affect temple tourism, according to Parthasarathy. This remark was made in reference to TTD’s former chairman and YSRC leader Bhumana Karunakar Reddy’s comments ‘against’ Lord Venkateswara which, the minister said, showed the Opposition party’s resolve to undermine temple tourism that generates considerable revenue to state exchequer.

Nellore’s ORR dream comes crashing down

A sudden stop after hard-braking appears to have become the story, at least for now, of Nellore’s much-discussed Outer Ring Road (ORR) project that met a force stronger than trundling traffic — minister Dr Ponguru Narayana, who poured cold water on the Rs.1,930-crore idea, saying the city can manage without it for now. While the Nellore Urban Development Authority chairman Kotamreddy Srinivasulu Reddy was hoping for a green light at a meeting where he assembled an impressive gathering of MLAs, collector mayor and department officials, the proposed 83.64-km ORR, passing through four Assembly constituencies, was dissected threadbare. As officials and MLAs were engrossed in the details, the minister stepped in to remind everyone that bypasses were being widened, underpasses were coming up and money did not grow on roadside trees. That was the end of the ORR dream, at least for now.

Cockahoop followers cock a snook at Pawan

When it is time for feathers to fly during Sankranti, even the words of their dear leaders fall on deaf ears. Such was the case in Pithapuram as fans and followers of Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan set aside his sage advice to refrain from Sankranti cockfights and gambling. His pointed advise to people, in particular his fans and Jana Sena cadres, to celebrate Sankranti but stay away from cockfights fell on deaf ears. Not just that, some of his fans and followers even had his face splashed on flexis along with those of other Jana Sena MLAs as they cocked a snook at Pawan’s advice and went ahead holding the banned cockfights with great gusto.

Contributions from Md Ilyas, Aruna, Sampat G. Samritan, Avinash P. Surbamanyam, Pathri Rajasekhar, Vadrevu Srinivas