Amma Vodi cash is flowing back into State coffers through liquor sale: TDP

Amaravati: TDP national spokesman Kommareddy Pattabhi Ram on Monday accused the Jagan Mohan Reddy government of betraying the poor women in the state in the name of the multi-crore 'Amma Vodi' programme without creating the right facilities for the education and golden future of their children.

Pattabhi said that the YSRCP was depositing the money into women's accounts on the one hand but taking back much more in the form of 'Nanna Buddi' (father's bottle) by increasing the liquor sales. Eventually, all this Amma Vodi money was going back to the Chief Minister's own distilleries which were supplying cheap liquor at the cost of the health of the innocent public.

Addressing a press conference at party office in Mangalagiri, the TDP leader asked whether it was not a fact that the Chief Minister issued GO 63 in the beginning itself to take back Rs 1,000 from the beneficiaries of Amma Vodi on the pretext of maintenance charges for bathrooms in schools. Jagan would speak so sweetly about his love for the poor children and students but had no heart to spend some extra government money for maintaining the bathrooms in the schools. The laptops' proposal was just another scheme to commit a massive scam.

Pattabhi said that during 2019-'20, the state government got an income of Rs 15,354 crore as per the official figures of the AP State Beverages Corporation. This was Rs 1,500 crore more when compared to the previous year. The Chief Minister should clarify whether he was discouraging or promoting liquor consumption in the state, he demanded.

Stating that cuts were imposed in fee reimbursement also, Pattabhi said that the Jagan Mohan Reddy's arbitrary policies had led to closure of over 40 out of the total 280 engineering colleges in the state this year. Another 100 colleges were on their way to closure thanks to insensitiveness of the government.

The TDP government increased fee reimbursement to Rs 45,000 but the YSRCP government was paying just Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000 to 77 per cent of the colleges. This was nothing but betrayal of the poor aspiring students on the part of the Chief Minister who promised total fees reimbursement at the time of elections.

Pattabhi said GO 77 was issued on the day of Christmas and also Vaikunta Ekadasi cancelling fee reimbursement for PG students in private aided and unaided colleges from 2020-21 itself.