Political Diary

The state government has finally decided to call fresh tenders for the Hyderabad Metro Rail project.This decision, taken at a high-level meeting chaired by the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, puts to rest rumours that the state government would take up the project on its own with the support of Central infrastructure fund.
The high-level meet opted for Public-Private-Partnership (PPP), in which global tenders would be called.Talking to media persons, the municipal administration minister, Mr Anam Ramnarayana Reddy, along with the Metro Rail project managing director, Mr N.V.S. Reddy, assured that the project cost would not be increased, though there was a delay of one year.
Mr Ramnarayana Reddy also said the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) factor would be retained. The firm or consortium that wins the bid will get nearly Rs 4,000 crore under the VGF component.The government decided to start the tender process from July 16 and wants to grant the contract in four months.
“The Chief Minister specifically instructed that by November 15, the tender should be awarded,” said Mr Ramnarayana Reddy.Though the government initially thought of contacting the second best bidder Magna Allamore, Siemens consortium and Reliance Infrastructure consortium, they were not keen on taking up the project under the norms of previous tender. “They also favoured fresh bidding,” said a senior official.
The project will also follow the changed PPP guidelines laid down by the Centre a month ago, which would block frivolous companies from participating in the bid.Under the new norms, a developer bidding for a PPP project worth Rs 500 crore have a record of executing projects worth Rs 1,000 crore. Earlier, the bidder need to have executed projects which are only one-and-a-half times the cost of the proposed project.Further, the state government has decided to increase the performance guarantee deposit from 0.5 per cent to 1 per cent. This means the successful bidder would have to deposit bank guarantees worth Rs 120 crore with the government. All this would make the bid process more serious.

Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy today asked bankers to grant crop loans to all eligible farmers in the State, including tenant farmers, by simplifying procedures and removing needless hurdles.
He specifically asked bankers to cover 5 lakh number new `non-loanee farmers’ during 2009-2010. “Under any circumstances, no eligible farmer should be denied crop loans on the pretext of rules and procedures,’’ the Chief Minister said, while interacting with officials on the eve of State Level Bankers’ Committee meeting to be held at Jubilee Hall tomorrow.
The chief minister pointed out that the banking sector could not achieve the target for crop loans during 2008-09 in spite of record agricultural production. The achievement was only 82.35 per cent during 2008-09. He wanted that the banks achieve the target for the year 2009-10 well in advance.
Reddy further suggested that crop loans to tenant farmers be substantially increased. He instructed the agricultural department to conduct farmers’ meets in all villages and send the list of tenant farmers to bank branches.He suggested that the government departments create opportunities for farmers to take up innovative projects under agriculture and allied activities by providing sufficient infrastructure.
He asked the officials to identify bankable schemes and formulate suitable programmes with subsidy component to enable the banks to provide loans under agricultural and industrial sectors. He wanted that the banks review the position of disbursements under Annual Credit Plan through their branches at regular intervals. He asked the officials to closely monitor loan disbursements and see that targets under the Credit Plan be achieved.
The chief minister said major focus should be given to horticulture schemes due to the ever increasing demand for vegetables. Similarly, the banks should finance dairy and sheep rearing schemes. He suggested that all farmers should be encouraged to take up dairy as a supplementary activity.
Reddy observed that aggregate advances of banking sector in the State at the end of March 2009 stood at Rs 2,10,294 crore, as against Rs 1,48,015 crores at the end of March 2008, registering a growth rate of 42.08 per cent during 2008-09. Agricultural advances by March 31, 2009 stood at Rs 51,487 crores constituting of 24.48 per cent of net bank credit, as against the RBI norm of 18 per cent.
He also referred to complaints from several farmers that bankers were refusing to disburse fresh loans to farmers who were benefited from loan waiver scheme announced by the Central Government last year. ``The loan waiver scheme was aimed at rescuing debt-ridden farmers. It does not mean they do not require fresh crop loans,’’ he said.

The rivalry between the TDP and Congress took an ugly turn here today with women legislators and one MLC of the TDP being insulted.TDP MLC Nannapaneni Rajakumari was beaten up to the point that she sustained injuries by Congress activists at a meeting here. Further, Satyavedu MLA Syamala, Srungavarapukota MLA Lalita Kumari, Guntur coroporator N Vijayalakshmi, MLC V Rajendra Prasad and Karanam Balaram were also attacked by the Congress activists. Some of them were injured in the attack.
Trouble broke out when one Suresh, who works as a field assistant in the Karamchedu panchayat in charge of NREGP works in the area, filed an SC/ ST atrocity case against Karamchedu village sarpanch Daggubati Anasuya and Daggubati Nageswara Rao besides two others _ Ramana and V Ramudu _ when they came along with a few workers of the NREGP to complain to Daggubati Venkateswara Rao that field assistant Suresh was not paying the workers correctly.
The sarpanch, her followers and the workers had reportedly complained to Daggubati Venkateswara Rao on June 21 that the field assistant was shortchanging the workers besides delaying the payments.But, Suresh, who was present along with Parchur MLA Daggubati Venkateswara Rao, then filed an SC/ST atrocity case against Karamchedu sarpanch Daggubati Anasuya and her husband Daggubati Nageswara Rao, Ramana and V Ramudu, almost two days later, ie on the evening of June 23.The police recently arrested three, except the sarpanch. The TDP sent a fact-finding committee to study the issue.
The committee comprised Rajakumari, Syamala, Lalita Kumari V Rajendra Prasad and Vijayalakshmi besides Karanam Balaram. The committee conducted a meeting in the Karemchedu village today at which Rajakumari allegedly spoke against Parchur MLA Daggubati Venkateswara Rao and alleged that Rao was acting cowardly by getting his aides file cases against the TDP cadre.
A crowd of 400 Congress supporters, standing right outside the place where the TDP commitee was conducting a meeting, suddenly created a scene at the meeting. During the scuffle, one of the supporters even tried to pull Rajakumari’s saree. Rajakumari was injured when she was hit by someone in the mob. Balaram and the other women MLAs too were not spared and were manhandled. The police intervened to bring the situation under control and set up a picket in the village to prevent further tension. Police told Express that the situation, though tense, was completely under control. The police registered a case at the Karamechedu police station.

Admitting the problem of ’fake pattadar passbooks’ was rampant mainly in Anantapur and Kadapa Districts, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy has assured bankers to provide soft copy of village-wise records for verification of ownership.’’The problem is very severe in Anantapur District, native place of Agriculture Minister N Raghuveera Reddy.’’After that, fake pattadar passbooks are rampant in Kadapa,’’ the Chief Minister said after inaugurating the 166th State-level Bankers Committee (SLBC) Meeting here yesterday.
The State Government had taken up the ’’Bhoobharati’’ Scheme on a pilot basis to survey land in the State based on satellite images.But this would take more time to complete, he said.He stressed on the need for bringing non-loanee farmers under the purview of the improved crop insurance scheme to avoid vicious cycle of indebtness and evolve a viable financial system.

The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to invite fresh global bids for the Rs 12,200 crore Hyderabad Metro Rail Project that was taken away from Maytas Infra after funding related problems.
The process will be initiated on July 16 and completed by November 15, according to state Municipal Administration Minister Aanam Ramanarayana Reddy."We want to put the Metro on tracks within the next three to four years," the Minister told reporters soon after a high-level review meeting on the HMR Project, chaired by Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy here today.
Last week, the state government cancelled the contract awarded to Maytas Infra-led consortium after it failed to tie up funds despite a three-month extension. Maytas Infra is promoted by kin of disgraced Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju.
Failure to mobilise funds forced the government to take stock of the project and firm up a decision on cancelling the award.Accordingly, the Chief Minister discussed the project with the Municipal Administration Minister and top officials here today.
"Everything else about the project, including the cost, will remain the same. If necessary we will utilise the viability gap fund offered by the Government of India," Ramanarayana Reddy said.
In view of the past experience, the bid security for the project was enhanced from 0.5 to one per cent, implying that the successful bidder would have to pay Rs 120 crore to the state government.

The TDP seems to be implementing operation Swagruha in a very calculated manner. As part of the move, the party hopes to bring back all the senior leaders who had quit the party before elections and are now disillusioned with PRP, sources said.
According to party sources, even the former home minister T Devender Goud and K Vidyadhar Rao who had switched over to PRP hoping to emerge as big leaders have been trying to build bridges with TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu during the last few days. Naidu, who has been not so keen about Goud initially, now seems to have softened his attitude and is veering round the opinion that re-entry of Goud could be an asset for the party in view of the forthcoming GHMC elections.
Goud, who was considered to be a big-time leader, quit TDP and floated his own party called Nav Telangana party and having failed to attract more leaders and cadre from TDP and unable to run the outfit merged it with PRP. He contested from Malkajgiri Lok Sabha and Ibrahimpatnam assembly seat lost the polls from both places. Since then he has been sulking even in PRP and has not been very active.
Another leader K Vidyadhar Rao has also been inactive and is understood to have sent feelers to TDP. Two other leaders from north coastal, Tammineni Sitaram and K Kalavenkat Rao are also learnt to be considering home coming though both of them had officially denied making such moves. It is also being said that former energy minister K Subbarayudu who had joined PRP just before the elections, is also under pressure from cadre to get back to TDP.
At a time when Congress party is alleged to be indulging in operation Akarsh and trying to lure its MLAs like Prasanna Kumar Reddy from Nellore district and harassing Kovvur MLA T V Rama Rao, TDP feels that if it takes back all those who left the party, it could send clear signals to the rank and file that it was the only alternative to Congress party and also cause political damage to PRP which it feels had marred its chances of coming to power.
In this situation, Naidu is understood to have given green signal for taking back if these leaders voluntarily want to come back to party fold.

Ever since, Praja Rajyam party was defeated in the elections, the downslide of the party gains momentum, and it was accelerated with the unending resignations of its senior leaders. The party and its Mega Boss Chiranjeevi keep watching helplessly those departing leaders.
Yesterday, it was the state organising secretary K.Mohana Rao, and tomorrow most probably it’s Tammineni Sitaram. It’s predicted that Tammineni will announce his decision at any time. Now, whoever remains inside can be counted as retired politicians, who don’t have any other alternative except PRP.
It seems PRP is planning to windup its business in a systematic method. No leader except Chiranjeevi is entrusted with a party activity. An occasional statement that appears in the news papers is the only live evidence of the party existence.
Its pity that a party which was launched with high expectations amid huge following, is in no time came to stand still.