Roundtable meet wants welfare-oriented govt in AP

Ongole: The speakers at the roundtable meeting, ‘Why Andhra Pradesh needs change?,’ held here on Sunday opined that the present government formed by the TDP has ruined the system in the State and they announced that the people are wanting to have a welfare-oriented government ruled by the young generation.

The speakers, the NRIs and intellectuals from various fields, indirectly hinted that they are supporting the leadership of YS Jaganmohan Reddy and wanted the YSRCP to form the government that replicates the rule of YS Rajasekhara Reddy.

Former Central service officer Srikanth Reddy coordinated the discussion while Dr Venkata Ramana, an NRI said that corruption has infested the government system in the rule of Chandrababu Naidu. He mentioned the works of Polavaram, secretariat at Velagapudi as an example to know how rampant the corruption in the state is.

Another NRI Harsha Vardhan opined that the law and order, health and education sectors were almost defunct in the state due to the involvement of corporate and TDP leaders everywhere. Advocate PV Subbarao said that the state government failed to provide utilisation certificates for the funds released by the Central government but using the money for unnecessary works and publicity of Chandrababu Naidu.

MRPS leader Kommuri Kanakarao said that the welfare schemes were forced to halt for months and if Naidu was made the chief minister again, the downtrodden will suffer a lot. Nalanda Educational Institutions and Holy Mary Group of Institution chairman Varaprasad said that electing a good and welfare-oriented government was a challenge for public now.

He said that YS Rajasekhara Reddy has fulfilled all promises in the manifesto and even introduced many schemes for public and wished to see the rule again. AP Chamber of Commerce secretary Gowri Sankar said the change in public mood was required to bring change in the state. He said that the business sector has suffered a lot in the last four years due to the decisions and recommendations by the government. He said that they need a welfare government after elections.

Overall, the event witnessed a healthy interaction between panel members and audiences on issues pertaining to the state with focus on the context of re-organisation in 2014 and Chandrababu Naidu government's failure to attain the special category status for Andhra Pradesh and rising corruption in the state. Most of the speakers opined that the TDP government made an opportunistic exit from the NDA coalition and is now trying to deceive people from its own failure.