September 2nd marks the 17th death anniversary of the late Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. His smiling face remains etched in people’s hearts and flashes on the mind’s screen each time the ubiquitous (108) ambulance goes by with its siren wailing.
Former Chief Minister of erstwhile AP Dr Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy | DC Library
Second-generation leaders or inheritors of a political legacy always come up against a tall mountain to climb, in terms of popular perception. Be it Stalin in Tamil Nadu, Akhilesh Yadav in UP, Surjit Singh Badal in Punjab, HD Kumaraswamy in Karnataka, or Udhhav Thackeray in Maharashtra and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy in our neighbouring Telugu state, to cite a few instances, each such leader is inevitably measured against the work and contribution of his larger-than-life father. In other words, they find themselves in the unenviable situation of having to fill oversized shoes. Dr. YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s political mantle fell on his son, the former chief minister of AP, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Not for nothing is Dr YSR idolised across the Telugu states as few leaders before him had been.
The Congress party rode to power in 2004 on the strength of YSR's leadership and his long padayatra stood tall as he walked through the undivided Andhra Pradesh to familiarise himself with the problems of the needy and impoverished under the TDP government of the day. It was this walkathon which gave YSR an insight into the welfare governance model which he wanted to develop for the State back then and also powered the Congress into office, unseating Chandrababu Naidu.
YSR’s first decision after assuming power in 2004 was to give free electricity to farmers and a loan waiver. His pathbreaking healthcare initiative, Arogyasri, brought corporate medical treatment to the doorstep of the poorest of the poor, and his celebrated fee reimbursement scheme empowered millions of youth with education which would otherwise have been well beyond their grasp. YSR envisioned pensions for widows and the elderly, and a higher allowance for the differently abled. The Indiramma housing scheme for the poor, which was one of his pet projects, was considered unprecedented in terms of its scale.
It was this model of welfare governance which fired the imagination of YS Jagan to come up with a slew of welfare schemes which would percolate to the grassroots across the state.
Of few men can it be more aptly said that some people never die. Such immortal souls live through their work, their ideals and accomplishments.
September 2nd marks the 17th death anniversary of the late Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. His smiling face remains etched in people’s hearts and flashes on the mind’s screen each time the ubiquitous (108) ambulance goes by with its siren wailing.
Dr YSR’s two rupees a kg rice scheme gave sustenance to millions of the poor and deprived and ensured that no one in the state was denied minimal means of subsistence.
When one looks back at the political history in the state, one can conclude that Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy undoubtedly achieved popularity through his pioneering schemes aimed at alleviating the suffering of the downtrodden.
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
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