The Sinking Andhra

Dharna, Hunger Strike, Damage, 144 Section, Bandh, Raastha Roko, Resignation…….these are the words being heard very frequently in Andhra Pradesh since few weeks. After 53 years of successful united Andhra Pradesh, a sudden lapse cropped in every metro, every city, village and finally in every telugu heart. “Seperation” lead to the disturbance, the pause and mega destroy!!

After a 30 year pause…….The movement of a separate state recapitulated again in 2001 with the formation of TRS.

8 Year saga of TRS in brief

K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) was a member of the Telugu Desam Party until he quit the party and formed the TRS in 2001 at Hyderabad. He quit the Membership of AP Legislative Assembly and the post of Deputy Speaker of AP Legislature while floating the Party.

In the 2004 assembly elections, the TRS formed an alliance with Congress and won 26 state assembly seats and 5 parliament seats at the national level. It joined the governments at both state and central level. Anyways that’s all past…

TRS lost in major constituencies it has contested in the recent 2009 Elections, winning just 10 assembly and 2 parliament. After a major defeat, it kept silent. The first 3 months….in search of reasons, followed by Dr Rajasekhara Reddy’s death and later with Floods. After a choky silence, KCR started hunger fast. The later aspects were known to all, Which need not be mentioned nor discussed here, coz every one was aware of daily episodes and how our state was into boil.

So, the point of explaining the story is, to enlighten everyone on this issue to some extent. But, upon all these , does it lead to development??

What we as Telugu People?

If Present and Future scenarios are accounted……If ”Delhi” is to give and “Andhra” is to receive, what we are up to as telugu people !! because the issue of telangana, according to many knowledgeable people, should be decided by people and not in 10, Janpath or at 7, Race course Road.

Certainly there are problems in Telangana since years. But, a separate telangana wouldn't lead to the automatic arrival of a new generation of doers. Rather, It wouldn't lead to any wonderful growth in new investments in industry or the services. What it does for the rural economy would be marginal because agriculture is set to lose more.

Like in many others, it has been projected that a separate Telangana will fetch more water to the farmers in the region and, hence, people prosper in the region. But, irrigation projects have become extremely complex in the present era with issues like environment, displacement of people (especially tribals), rehabilitation, resettlement, compensation etc. The separatists often business those from other regions to be shrewd, dominating and successful lobbyists. But even these attributes could not help them in making Polavaram a reality.

If facts are measured, the families, lifestyles, crop cycles, credit facilities, past, present, future etc. of farmers were completely different from a Telangana farmer to a Andhra farmer. The problems faced by them had little to do with water and more with other issues like increasing balkanization of farmlands, salinity of soil, raising prices of agricultural inputs etc. Since, most of them have to endure months at a stretch without seeing a single rupee of income, they just can’t wait for remunerative prices to arrive. A farmer cant predict the future, he doesn’t know the margin he gets when the rations/material sent to the godowns/cold storages. There, it all depends on agents. The ultimate profit maker is an agent or the miller. Nothing remains for the poor farmer except a satisfaction that the food goes into many human. There are many agents who earn Rs 35-40 lakhs a year. Now, consider this. A person makes Rs 35-40 lakhs a year, without having even an office. He does not have to bear the vagaries of nature. He does not suffer from risk of pests. No Logistics crises .Most importantly, he does not have to wait for six to nine months. This man does not have an identity, unless the UID cards give him one. Some have registrations. But many don’t. They don’t file their returns of income. There are thousands of such faceless agents who thrive on the sweat, blood and misery of the farmer. The Government has framed every possible law and rule to protect/toss the farmer. Including, the compensation given to a farmer, citing reasons resulted his death. But farmer is in such desperation for money that he would be more eager to cooperate with any deviation if he assured of instant cash.

Due to heavy drought in 1997, thousands of farmers ended up their lives in mahabubnagar district. This resulted in migration of lakhs of palamur labour to various places for employment. The then TDP government had a smaller vision on 1997 migration and greater vision named “Vision 2020” on Hyderabad didn’t solve their problem. With the change of seats in 2004 both at the centre and the state and a merger of TRS with congress, it bagged the two portfolios which directly deal with fate of poor and downtrodden, Labour Ministry and Rural Development Ministry. But, the TRS found their seats were pretty comfortable rather than looking at the comfort of the poor in their districts.

If it is not Irrigation, it should be Industrialization and subsequent development. Neighbouring Tamil Nadu had developed Coimbatore, Tirupur and Karur as the major Textile hub’s in India with a turnover of Rs 50,000 million and employing 7,50,000 people.  It has Automobile and Telecommunication manufacturing units with as many as 20 automotive manufacturers and assemblers and global telecommunications giants like Nokia, Flextronics, Motorola, Sony-Ericsson, Foxconn, Samsung, Cisco, Moser Baer and Dell, who had chosen Chennai as their base in South India……..creating ample of opportunities for their people.

While In Andhra Pradesh, the government run “APCO” suffering due to lack of funds, planning to shut 1200 outlets in the state.

Some Controversial Facts:

Pro Telangana:

People from Telangana region pay more taxes (Through more Alcohol consumption) than Andhra but the claim is that these are being used for the development of Andhra regions. It if were a separate state it can use all the money from the region for its own development.

No Telangana:

Isn’t it a fact that every part of the state needs resources for its own development? As most parts of Andhra have good lands they generate more money and this can be shared if not equally. There are no big movements after 1969 unless the political parties bring it up.

Rivers flowing in Telagana region, but Deccan plateau is at some height and water can not flow to sloppy region. Most of terrain in Telagana is rocky and not useful for agricultural purpose.

Fact : Unfortunately, the Nizams ran a military-feudal system, focused on revenue collection rather than mass education and development. Soon, the economic and cultural gap between the two peoples was enormous.

The Future Prediction : The formation of Telangana will be on roll, which might take 2-3 years. The 2014 Elections will be on the move and political parties have a race with one most important agenda in common…..” It is our party who fought enormously and achieved Telangana….Please vote for us”.

“But, is growth possible this way??”

Note: This article may have little discrepancies from the real facts unintentionally. Corrections are always welcome. This article tried to be neutral as an issue always has two stories.

Thanks,

Regards,

Srujan.

"The Memoirs of United Andhra"

With the recent exertion in the state I was pretty much irked upon the political episodes which disrupted the life of the people to a maximum extent. The political substance which led to the annoyance in all the regions of the state also shook some of the regions in Delhi.

When I asked myself to summarize the history of our state, Andhra Pradesh has 23 districts, 1 language and 3 regions, I just counted. I only know some numbers!! Soon, I googled the antiquity of Andhra since Independence. I distilled the web and print for a week to educate myself and further develop the article. Though it wasn’t mandatory knowing…..the motivation, the unity, the progress and the achievement was majestic.

The Andhra State formation

16 December 1952, when the procession reached Mount Road in Chennai, thousands of people joined and raised slogans hailing “Sriramulu”. The news spread like wildfire and created uproar among the people in far off places like Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur, Tenali and Nellore.This is when Potti Sriramulu died and laid down his life trying to achieve a separate “Andhra” state. On the basis of an agitation, on October 1, 1953, 11 districts in the Telugu-speaking portion of Madras State(Coastal Andhra and Rayala Seema) voted to become the new state of Andhra State with Kurnool as the capital. Andhra Kesari Tanguturi Prakasam Pantulu became first Chief Minister of thus formed Telugu State.

The Merger with Telangana

On November 1, 1956 Andhra State merged with the Telangana region of erstwhile Hyderabad State to form a united Telugu-speaking state of Andhra Pradesh and Hyderabad, the former capital of the Hyderabad State, was made the capital of the new state Andhra Pradesh.

In early 1950s, there was “Visalandhra movement” in both Andhra and Telangana regions which called for the merger of Andhra and Telangana region to form a single Telugu speaking state. The movement is stronger in Andhra region than in Telanagana region. Andhra mahasabha was a powerful organisation existing in Telangana which advocated as "Visalandhra"(larger Andhra). However there were concerns about the merger in Telangana during the movement.

The concerns about Telangana were complex. The region had a less developed economy than Andhra, but a larger revenue base (mostly because it taxed rather than prohibited alcoholic beverages), which Telanganites feared might be diverted for use in Andhra. They also feared that planned dam projects on the Krishna and Godavari rivers would not benefit Telangana proportionately even though Telanganites controlled the headwaters of the rivers. Telanganites feared too that the people of Andhra would have the advantage in jobs, particularly in government and education.

Advantage case for Visalandhra

States Reorganization Commission which is known as SRC, submitted its report to the central government in 1955 for Telangana-Andhra. It pictured many advantages for being a merger. It also stated the individual benefits of the regions.

• The advantages of a larger Andhra State including Telangana are that it will bring into existence of 3 crore population, with large water and power resources, adequate mineral wealth and valuable raw materials. The twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad are very well suited to be the capital of Visalandhra.
• The Krishna and the Godavari projects rank amongst the most ambitious in India, which can be brought under unified control.
• Telangana has in years of scarcity in food supplies. The Andhra State, however, has a surplus which Telangana may be able to use. Andhra has likewise no coal, be able to get its supplies from Singareni (which was spread around 4 districts).
• Finally, formation of linguistic states is the most important.

Advantage case for Telangana

• The existing Andhra State had a huge financial problem ever since it was formed and in comparison with Telangana the existing Andhra State has low per capita revenue.
• One of the major principal causes of opposition of Vishalandhra is a concern felt by educationally backward people of Telangana that they may be exploited by the more advanced people of the coastal areas.
• One important reason is, that the existing Hyderabad State and Telangana as part of Hyderabad have benefited from the Finance Commissions' recommendations in 1952.
• The financial position of Telangana need not cause anxiety.

What led to the join?

Andhra and Telangana have common interests and language. These interests will tend to bring the people closer to each other. The commission also concluded that the feelings of the people of Telangana and the fears entertained were dispassionate.

Fact: The Prime Minister of the time, Jawaharlal Nehru, was not in favour of merging Telangana with the Andhra state. He ridiculed the demand for Visalandhra as an idea bearing a "tint of expansionist imperialism". (Indian Express, October 17, 1953).

Development in Telangana in 60’s

• Education institutions in the region were greatly expanded, but Telanganites felt that their enrolment was not proportionate to their numbers.
• With an ample development, there was a massive migration of people from Andhra into Telangana with the selection of Hyderabad as capital.

The rise of Telangana movement in 1969

Telanganites felt discriminated against in education-employment. The deputy chief minister position was never filled. Discontent with the 1956 Gentlemen’s agreement (Read Gentlemen’s agreement given below) was not implemented. The state government told that most non-Telanganites (Andhra) had been hired on the grounds that qualified local people were unavailable. In addition, the unification of pay scales between the two regions appeared to disadvantage Telangana civil servants. So, this discontent had amalgamated broke apart by region. This led to Separate Telangana Movement with a student agitation in Osmania University in 1969. Approximately 360 students gave their lives in this movement

The Gentlemen's agreement of Andhra Pradesh (1956)

The agreement provided safeguards with the purpose of preventing discrimination against Telangana by the government of Andhra Pradesh. The alleged violations of this agreement are cited as one of the main reasons for demands of a separate telangana.

What is in the agreement?

• A Regional Standing Committee members of the State Assembly belonging to that region including the Ministers from telangana region but not including the Chief Minister.
• Telangana area will be treated as one region for more convenient transaction for government.
• Distribution of expenditure between Telangana and Andhra Regions. A balance of income should be reserved for expenditure on the development of Telangana area.
• The cabinet will consist of members in proportion of 60:40 percent for Andhra and Telangana respectively, out of 40 % of Telangana ministers, one will be a Muslim from Telangana. If the Chief Minister is from one region the other region should be given Dy Chief Ministership.
The Regional Committee will deal with following matters:
Development and economic planning, Local Self Government, that is to say, the Constitutional powers of Municipal Corporations, Some basic eminities like Public health and sanitation, local hospitals and dispensaries, Primary and secondary education, Prohibition, Sale of agricultural lands.

Developments after 1969

Telangana Praja Samithi, a political party was formed in 1969, fighting for the statehood of Telangana region. The main leader of the party was the former Congress leader Marri Channa Reddy, who later on became the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh twice.

The Lok Sabha elections took place in 1971, TPS won 11 of the 13 seats in Telangana. That was obviously the result of the 360 lives lost in police firing in 1969. The assembly elections followed in 1972. By that time, Chenna Reddy had entered into a deal with Indira Gandhi and merged TPS with Congress. P V Narasimha Rao was brought in as CM. The merger of the TPS with Congress, without realizing its basic objectives, was seen as a betrayal. Frustrated and cheated by the politicians, many young educated people and students joined the Naxal movement. It was sad.

For 50 years, Andhra Pradesh was united and developed to become one of the major state with maximum industrialization. It was in 2001, the united slogan shifted to divided.
My next post will be on current political scenario, very soon.

Source : http://wikipedia.org
http://cosmicvoices.blogspot.com

Note: This article may have little discrepancies from the real facts unintentionally. Corrections are always welcome. This article tried to be neutral as an issue always has two stories.

I would feel happy if the blog had advantaged everyone in knowledge!!

Thanks,
Regards,
Srujan.

My Way of Life

I was wondering, how come I had never taken a flight from Hyderabad-New York via Frankfurt, never found smelling currency in my bank account or never drove an Audi. But still, I strongly believe I’m the happiest person living!! Putting before you a few sessions of my confidence which led to happiness!!

Since my final year of Engineering I was very much fascinated about cinema. At a very young age ManiRatnam made me inclined towards filmmaking, RGV during my adolescence and Sekhar Kammula influenced me with Anand. Though I was not into any craft of film making directly, I rendered how a scene can be gripped on my own way in writing. Writing gradually came out of my interest. I did not create any miracle but, scripting made me strong and happy, as I am never before. How writing made me happy…..in my words….

Initially I was a bit sceptical blogging some stories that were little close to reality. This time I wanted to make much closer to the human truth. This happened when my friend Raghu was discussing with me about blogging and happy living. I started blogging immediately I read “Five point Someone”. Of course, I read and inspired. With the recent “2 States”, I felt I can perform better than Chetan Bhagat, who frequently uses sex as a seduction in all his. Hey, my confidence levels aren’t high; it’s an approach to which my views were given a silhouette. I found immense satisfaction in writing. So I made it….

At my early stage of writing I was little timid exposing my feelings in public. But, some external power made me open-up my views (may be the girl in the train!!). So happened, “Signs of Love” which was true….by nature!! It gave me an enormous confidence and happiness that I never attained. Though people did not enjoy my other writings to that extent, I did not stop. Coz, I felt, my pleasure feels bad….just like

"సరదాకి సిగ్గేస్తే.....మంచికి మొహమాటం అడోచ్చినట్టు!!"

“Saradaki Siggesthe.…..Manchiki Mohamatam Adochchinattu”.

I was happy blogging!! But, due to little down in my career…..i stopped blogging in the name of “Career Concentration”. IT’S A LIE.

“Siggu” and “Mohamatam” overlapped at one stage……So, I stopped blogging for quiet a while.

Recently, I attended an interview with an MNC in Bangalore. I landed there with hope weighing a tonne, I cleared the final technical & HR. But, hope didn’t remain for long….pchchch…I lost the interview. Immediately, I sold my “lost hope” to “heartfull of disappointment”. The same evening when I was in search to gain little confidence, I found my seat in S5 with baggage on my back and India Today weekly with a cover page “Sex Survey 2009- The Fantasy Report” in my right hand. I killed some time reading the Fantasy report. The whole night I was in hunt of little pleasure that will stuff-in some confidence. Amma, Daddy, Reddygadu, and Anushka arrived in sleep but, they did not really get into. Amma for Love ,Daddy for Confidence, Reddygadu for giggling and Anushka here for Romance and Pleasure. But none of them won. Yet, I need to build confidence for further Interviews and future living. “Aathmavisvasam, anedhi……Aathmasthairyanni nimpe aayudham…..manishi payanam lo baga panikostundhi”. So I started writing….here’s the reality!!

The Reality

The truth is that, all these days I masked myself in the name of refurbishing my career. To be honest, it was false! “My real contentment lies in blogging. Coz, I gain a lot of confidence in writing….so in a way I’m boosting myself to perform more in doing other activities. I do get lot more satisfaction and this fulfilment doesn’t let me feel lonely or feel dejected….” i have these words in heart, but shared by raghu during our recent conversation. So, these words hammered me and awaken the Self-Actualization!!

The Self-Actualization

Very few people go with their interests…..some times people hesitate doing anything of their wish. It was because of hundreds of eyes watching them. Even I made the same mistake. During my study, I found few eyes watching and very few hearts caring, when it comes to reality. my roomies & close buddies were among them.

పని ఉన్న వాడికి పక్కవాడి ప్రయత్నాలు పట్టించుకునే ప్రాధాన్యం తక్కువ కదా!

“Pani unna vadiki pakkodi prayatnalanu pattinchukune pradhanyam thakkuva kada”

“I made a habit of complimenting a person who has done good or favour in any form. Say, it can be……..not using mobile while driving (or) a person with good traffic sense etc. They feel happy!! I attended my close friends wedding in Vijayawada in November. There, the food was too delicious and yummy; I never tasted such a menu in the past 10 years. Soon, I complimented the caterer, which made him turn over joyous and feel proud about the tasty menu he served. Due to the interview schedules, I really missed attending few other weddings of my friend in vizag. Weddings are once in a life time affair for everyone. I, as a person seek to make my presence the most possible…It’s just not they invited, they definitely expect us at the time of invite and I land up there with world’s best wishes for their relationship.”…..so, these injected happiness in me!!

The Happiness

I do not do all these for any credibility…….I do for my happiness, my world, my life.

Just try to reach out to your happiness…..Congratulate, Wish a good luck, Inspire and Encourage the people before you. You would be amazed how everyone around you will respond--and how much better you will feel.

Anyway the point of this whole article is that I am just so fascinated and intended to see people happy, be optimistic, be funny…..I just live in the moment of real self-actualization and love every person deeply. All these make me stand confident with happiness. Finally, my close buddies are also a reason for my rear, pure and eternal nature!

PS: I requested a 40 yr old, not to use his mobile while driving……in return, I was bashed with the world’s worst language.

Thanks,

Regards,

Srujan.