Press Releases Archive

Govt. funding Congress electioneering: Lok Satta

The Lok Satta Party said today the Government has given a new definition to State funding of elections by unveiling schemes that fetch votes to the ruling party at the cost of the exchequer. It is, therefore, no surprise that the Government has given a goby to propriety and used the ‘vote-on-account’ budget to announce schemes that promote the ruling party’s interests and ensured that non-Plan expenditure is much more than Plan expenditure.

Talking to the media, Mr. D. V. V. S. Varma, Lok Satta Party General Secretary, said the allocation of Rs.825 core to the Department of Information and Public Relations in the budget exposes the ruling party’s designs to utilize Government funds for propaganda purposes also.

Mr. Varma regretted that the Government persisted with its policy of providing sops and freebies by viewing people as voting machines in flesh and blood instead of treating them with dignity and enabling them to stand on their own feet. The food subsidy scheme is going to cost Rs.3000 crore during 2009-10 because the Government is not interested in weeding out bogus cards and ensuring that only the deserving got rations. The Government does not pay attention to ensuring supply of quality power even as it spends Rs.5000 crore on subsidy.

Mr. Varma said Finance Minister K. Rosaiah was indulging in cock and bull stories when he claimed the Government imposed no new taxes. How could the Government claim a revenue of Rs.16,000 crore from liquor sales when it was committed to reducing liquor consumption in stages?

Mr. Varma also faulted the Government for not taking the economic downturn all over the country seriously.

Thursday, February 5, 2009 - 16:40

Lok Satta promises package for Rayalaseema

The Lok Satta will announce an exclusive package for the development of the backward Rayalaseema region and bring about reforms in police administration to eradicate criminal culture once and for all.

The Lok Satta Party’s Campaign Committee for Rayalaseema region announced today that if elected to power the party would curb corruption in the TTD and utilize the funds thus saved for promoting education and health care. It would also expedite all pending irrigation projects in the region.

Messrs. G. Malyadri, T. R. Jagannadha Reddy, Mallikarjun, H. Vasantamma, Nabi Rasul and Jaganmohana Raju are the committee members.

Talking to the media, the committee members noted that although the Chief Ministers for the last 15 years happened to be from Rayalaseema, the region continued to remain backward. The Governments had not tried to provide irrigation facilities to the drought-prone regions. On the contrary, it was dispossessing farmers of their lands in the name of industrialization. The Lok Satta would render justice to the region by ensuring equitable distribution of river waters and by promoting agriculture.

The Lok Satta would also expose dynastic politics and how the youth of the region were used as pawns in factional politics. The Lok Satta would facilitate access to quality education, health care, job-oriented skills and employment opportunities to all.

The Lok Satta wanted the Chief Minister to ensure free and fair polling in Pulivendula and get reelected from his home constituency since he claims to have done all that can be done for the State’s development.

Thursday, February 5, 2009 - 16:32

Lok Satta agenda for Telangana

The Lok Satta is not opposed to the formation of a separate Telangana State but it believes that a solution to its problems lies in total decentralization of power and resources through formation of district governments.

The Lok Satta Party’s Election Campaign Committee members told the media that a separate State could always be carved out if the people wished it, by following the procedure prescribed in the Constitution. When more than 80 countries in the world are less in area than a district in Andhra Pradesh, formation of a Telangana State is not a big deal.

The Campaign Committee comprises Prof. Kodandarama Rao, Mr. Bodepudi Satyanarayana, Mr. K. Dharma Reddy, Mr. Dommata Venkateswarlu, Mr. Juluri Satyanarayana and Mrs. Gita Murthy.

The members said their agenda for Telangana includes:

  • Constitution of a tribunal to allocate river waters equitably to all districts
  • Formation of 400 new towns to spur commercial and industrial development
  • Provision of road and bus facilities to every village
  • 24-hour power supply to every village
  • Provision of quality power to the farm sector and Government compensation for motors damaged by voltage fluctuations
  • Protected drinking water supply to every village
  • Employment opportunities to a million youth
  • Uplift of 10 million people above the poverty line
  • Closure of belt shops and gudumba outlets and restriction on liquor consumption
Wednesday, February 4, 2009 - 17:08

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