Reddy: On the wrong side

Hyderabad, Dec. 1: Politics appears to have led Andhra Pradesh?s revenue officials to declare that rain-deficit Karimnagar district has received ample rainfall in the last few months. The district thus stands to lose the drought assistance the government provides.

Barely two months ago, revenue officials declared 35 of the 50 mandals in Naxalite-infested Karimnagar district as drought-prone.

But the officials now say the district received surplus rainfall and hence does not qualify for any drought relief.

Revenue department statistics show Karimnagar received ample rainfall; there was no dearth of drinking water or fodder.

But bureaucrats believe the Telengana Rashtra Samiti?s ascendancy in the district, edging out the Telugu Desam Party and the Congress alike, has led to the denial of funds.

The new classification has made the Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy government, of which the TRS is a part, stop drought relief and employment generation projects worth Rs 175 crore in the district. ?It is unfair that the government (has) played politics with the livelihood of (the) poor and weaker sections,? a pro-Telengana campaigner said here.

Karimnagar has thus lost out in the drought report that the Reddy regime recently submitted to the Centre. Although central teams have visited Andhra twice, relief measures have not been implemented.

The Union revenue department has advised the state government to redraft its report for speedy action.

In August, the Reddy government had declared the posh residential colonies of Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills in Shaikpet mandal here and the industrial belt of Ameerpet as drought-hit.

The criteria applied for categorising them as such was that they received rainfall less than 55 cm during the southwest monsoon this year. Last month, Jubilee Hills was said to have been hit by a drinking water crisis as well.

?Special arrangements were made to supply drinking water through water tanks in the colony where former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and the IT giants live,? municipal corporation chairman T. Krishna Reddy said.

Caught on the wrong foot, the Andhra revenue department is trying to correct its mistakes and has blamed the goof-up on statistics provided by the meteorological and agricultural departments.

Last fortnight, the state government presented a memorandum to the Centre seeking Rs 1,575 crore for drought relief in 795 of Andhra?s 1,200 revenue mandals.