Hyderabad Blues

Fast Over Fees

What do politicians do when they feel the spotlight on them is fading away? Well, we don't know about other states, but in Andhra Pradesh, there are two simple rules which politicians follow. They either undertake a yatra or go on a fast. Y S Vijayalakshmi, the honorary president of YSR Congress, who never really has anything interesting to say other than the "injustices" being meted out to son Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, is undertaking a two-day fast on July 14 and 15 to protest a GO (government order) fixing a ceiling of Rs 35,000 under the fee reimbursement scheme to engineering students in the state.  

“The government has issued a GO fixing a ceiling of Rs 35,000 to engineering students which will further dilute the fees reimbursement scheme introduced by YSR and the government may completely do away with the welfare scheme that has benefited many students belonging to the weaker sections. The YSR Congress has decided to protest against the government policy and will undertake a two-day deeksha,” party senior leader MV Mysoora Reddy says. “The ceiling of Rs 35,000 reimbursement has been increased from 90 to 175 colleges and the move seems to be watering down the spirit of the scheme. Such harsh measures would keep the higher and technical education far away from weaker sections,” he feels. The fee reimbursement scheme introduced by the late YSR made him very popular with students from poor backgrounds as well as SCs, STs and BCs to pursue engineering, medicine, MBA and MCA in private colleges. 

Third Front Dreams

It was Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu who had been talking of forming a Third Front at the national level for long. Naidu, who loves to bask in past glories, never fails to remind mediapersons about how he once declined the post of prime minister and magnanimously stepped aside, allowing H D Deve Gowda to occupy the post. As the 2014 General elections approach, Naidu again put out feelers to the usual Third Front suspects. When asked about Jayalalithaa and Mamata Banerjee, Naidu said he was talking to them as well. It was therefore a rude shock for the TDP chief when Mamatadi called up the YSR Congress' Vijayalakshmi asking if Jagan would be interested in joining the Federal Front. The Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister apparently told Vijayalakshmi over phone that the Lok Sabha elections are likely to be held before May, 2014 and the possibility of like-minded parties coming together ought to be explored. Mamata then asked Vijayalakshmi to take the proposal to son Jaganmohan Reddy and obtain his opinion on the issue. According to the YSR Congress, Mamata enquired about the cases "foisted" on Jagan and recalled her association with the late Y S Rajasekhara Reddy.  Needless to say, this has caused a lot of heartburn in the TDP camp. While the TDP leaders were dreaming of a sweep in the Assembly and Lok Sabha polls and Naidu becoming 'King' instead of just Kingmaker, this was the unkindest cut of all. Now even Telugu Desam leaders feel this is an indication that their party will lose badly in the forthcoming polls. The other argument is that the TDP's no-objection stand to Telangana statehood has put off Mamata because the TMC is opposed to smaller states. 

Alternative Roadmaps

AICC in-charge of Andhra Pradesh Digvijay Singh has fuelled enormous hope among T-proponents with his roadmap talk. The senior Congress leader has asked Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha and Pradesh Congress Committee chief Botsa Satyanarayana to prepare roadmaps on the Telangana issue. While this may seem like a definitive step in favour of statehood, Diggy Raja pulled a typical Congress trick out of the bag. He asked the three leaders to prepare two roadmaps, one in favour of a separate Telangana and the other in favour of a united Andhra Pradesh. Telangana Congress leaders feel that the entire exercise is self-defeating and smacks of a lack of sincerity. Meanwhile, officials and partypersons entrusted with the task of preparing the roadmaps wonder what the fuss is all about. The documents which were prepared during the time of the Srikrishna Committee report just need to be dusted and presented afresh. The Telangana Rashtra Samiti has been cool on the whole matter. TRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao has not been too receptive to the Congress' offer of a merger. He believes that this is just a move by the Congress to up its popularity quotient before the crucial panchayat polls. Meanwhile, KCR's son and MLA K Taraka Rama Rao tweeted: "History repeats itself; albeit with a change. Resignation drama by YSRCP & Congress MLAs has begun much BEFORE the hyped announcement this time. Deja vu!".  Student groups fighting for the Telangana cause such as the OUJAC (Osmania University Joint Action Committee) say they have been asked to keep sweets ready as some "sweet news" awaits them. But so far, it is a case of no news.

Accident Tourists

The shocking collapse of City Light Hotel in Secunderabad, believed to be close to 80 years old, leaving at least 17 persons dead, has galvanised the Greater Municipal Hyderabad Corporation into action. It has begun surveying about 274 other old buildings located in the Old City, Secunderabad, Begum Bazar, Sultan Bazar, Jambagh, Feelkhana, Goshamahal and other places. There are several heritage buildings in Hyderabad, many built of lime and mortar which have been decaying over time. Most of the owners would rather lease out the old buildings since they neither have funds nor the architectural support. Many private heritage building owners are clueless about maintenance. Heritage preservation is usually considered a culture and tourism subject. Technical expertise on restoring such buildings is not available too easily. Meanwhile, the GHMC officials say that even when buildings seem to be facing an obvious threat of collapse, owners rush to the court and obtain stay orders. This makes the GHMC's job more tedious. After the City Light tragedy, it was again the same story. There was a steady stream of curious onlookers and politicians eager to grab some limelight and trade charges against each other. The number of VIP vehicles which poured on to the R P Road in Secunderabad even as rescue operations were on, was shocking. Ultimately, the traffic police blocked entry of all vehicles to the road and CISF workers were free to do their job sans interruption.