Eluru MP Introduces Q&A Programme In His Constituency

Kakinada:Eluru Lok Sabha member Putta Mahesh Kumar Yadav has launched an innovative programme – Question is yours and voice is mine – to know grievances of the public in his parliamentary constituency, so that these can be brought to the notice of the central government.

The MP asked people to send their grievances, especially those connected to the central government, to WhatsApp numbers 9618194377 and 9885519299.

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Mahesh Kumar said he would select some of the best questions and raise them in the parliament on behalf of the people. He disclosed that those whose questions will be raised in the Lok Sabha will be given the opportunity to watch the Lok Sabha session through the visitors’ gallery.

The Lok Sabha member said that when he introduced the programme during the previous sessions, he received 130 grievances and some of them had been raised in the parliament. He said he raised issues related to NREGS in the Lok Sabha session last time.

Based on the grievances posed by the people, Mahesh Kumar said he asked the union Rural Development minister whether the government has taken any initiatives to provide employment to young rural educated women and details of the number of beneficiaries helped during the last five years.

The MP said he also raised a question on delays in issuing pensions on higher wages, whether there is a monitoring mechanism in place, including social audit, geo-tagging, and inspections, apart from action taken against officials.

DoT Tones Up Digital Security, Network Quality In AP

Vijayawada: Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has intensified efforts to strengthen digital security, improve network quality and deliver citizen-centric telecom services in Andhra Pradesh, AP Telecom additional director general (ADG) M. Nagesh Rao has said. Addressing a press conference in Vijayawada on Thursday, he said over 700 financial institutions, including 41 urban cooperative banks in AP, have been onboarded onto the Financial Fraud Risk Indicator module in AP, aiding the prevention of fraudulent transactions.

Nagesh Rao disclosed that nationwide, 36.49 lakh suspicious mobile numbers have been identified. 17.27 lakh connections have been re-verified and disconnected, 282 SIM-selling centres blacklisted, and police cases filed against 63 retailers. The ADG said a key initiative is the launch of the Sanchar Saathi portal and mobile app, aimed at empowering citizens and curbing telecom fraud.

Under its CEIR module, which helps trace and recover lost or stolen mobile phones, 46,488 handsets have been recovered and returned to their respective users in AP during FY 2025–26. On infrastructure safety, Nagesh Rao explained that all 30,000 mobile towers and 1.13 lakh BTSs in AP are compliant with EMF radiation norms. Quality of service tests have been conducted in Vijayawada and Puttaparthi. Under Digital Bharat Nidhi projects, extensive 4G coverage has been provided to thousands of villages, while 172 villages have been selected under the Samriddhi Gram Panchayat project. He pointed out that after Cyclone Montha, telecom services had been restored 99 per cent within 24 hours.

Through Know Your Mobile Connections (KYM) service, the ADG said the Chakshu module enables reporting of fraudulent calls, SMSs and WhatsApp messages, while RICWIN helps detect international calls masquerading as Indian numbers. Based on citizen inputs, seven major SIMBOX cyber fraud rackets have been identified and dismantled in Andhra Pradesh, he added.