Cong condemns Babu's views on Rosaiah's rule

The Congress government on Wednesday came down heavily on the Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu for criticising the Rosaiah government, inspite of the ‘tremendous progress under the leadership of the Chief Minister.’

Ministers Dharmana Prasada Rao and Danam Nagender condemned the manner in which the TDP politburo had on Tuesday criticised the Rosaiah government, which had “been making best of the efforts to run the administration effectively since the demise of former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy.” The Ministers added that Mr Naidu’s alleged remarks against Congress government were baseless and ‘calumny.’

The two were speaking to media persona after the Cabinet Meeting and before the scheduled briefing by Information and Broadcasting Minister J Geetha Reddy.

Mr Prasada Rao made it clear that the farm production after 2004 was much better and that farm sector’s growth rate has been on the higher side. He said the state recorded over 45 lakh tonnes of rice output and the jobs in the farm sector have increased manifold.

The Revenue Minister also categorically stated that the rice production was at its peak now due to good rainfall in the state and the output was so high that the government was finding it difficult to find storage facility to preserve the grains. 

Mr Prasada Rao charged Mr Naidu of lacking knowledge in this sector and highlighted how the farmers fared badly during the TDP regime.

He made light of Mr Naidu’s comments regarding the agricultural production and the poor farmers' plight and added that the TDP chief was not aware of the Congress' NREGA scheme. Mr Prasada Rao also stated that Andhra Pradesh was the leader in implementing the scheme and others states were following its example.

The Revenue Minister also stated that the government has worked overtime in respect of meeting the farmers' requirements by making available Rs 6,800 crore for the agricultural labourers. He claimed that this alone was proof that the Rosaiah government had fared much better than the erstwhile TDP government. 

Mr Prasada Rao pointed out that the Arogyasri scheme had been covering the poor offering corporate facilities, which is being emulated by other states today.

He added that even in respect of fee reimbursement to students, the Chandrababu government failed and asked the TDP chief to specify just one field or one scheme which benefited the farmers in general during his rule. 

The Revenue Minister stated that Rosaiah government had done the best possible during its one year rule and described it as ‘success.’

In support of the Revenue Minister, Health Minister Danam Nagender termed Chandrababu as the World Bank's blue boy, who lifted as much as Rs 50,000 crore loan from it. The Health Minister added that Mr Naidu had only worked to earn praises of people like Bill Gates and was always singing his tunes.

Mr Nagender reminded that Mr Naidu had come to power by backstabbing his father-in-law.

The Health Minister urged Mr Naidu to offer constructive suggestions. Mr Nagender advised the TDP chief that if he continued on with the same style of functioning, his party would vanish and that the NTR Trust Bhavan will be deserted by the party cadre, except Mr Naidu’s kith and kin.