TDP promises to cost Rs 20,000 crore

Hold your breath, it requires more than Rs 20,000 crore a year to implement Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu’s promises to the people, if his party comes to power in the next elections.

And this was admitted by Naidu himself. However, he says it is not difficult to mobilise funds for the same. “The State government’s revenue has gone up to Rs 70,000 crore a year in the last 10 years.

And it is going by 15-20 per cent every year. Taking this increased revenue into account, it is not difficult to fund the schemes we are proposing,” he said.

Naidu says if corruption is removed and there is a proper channelisation of resources, the schemes can be easily implemented. He recalled an incident of a woman complaining to him during his recent tour in Vizianagaram district that she was not getting even 5 per cent of the promised pension, since the remaining amount was being knocked away by middlemen and local leaders. “If we can avoid this kind of corruption, we can easily implement our schemes,” he said.

Sakshi Ram Earns Rs 50 Cr So Far

When it comes to earning money, all it takes is oodles of talent and a stroke of luck that will take you to envious heights. So here is one man who seems to be standing as the perfect example for such a thing. He is none other than Priyadarshini Ram who is currently part of the Sakshi group.

Ram happens to be the entertainment head of the newspaper but more than that he is said to be a very close confidante of Y S Jagan, the man behind the formation of Sakshi group. He also happened to be a producer once upon a time but his movies Manodu, Toss bombed miserably at the box office.

It is heard that given his close links with Jagan, many have been approaching him for favors and also with the Sakshi newspaper on hand; reliable sources have confirmed that Priyadarshani Ram has amassed a fortune of Rs 50 crores which is good enough income for this lifetime at least. Big boys and big games folks!!!

Colour TVs to poor says Babu

Poor people in the State can watch the entire world in colour, if Telugu Desam comes to power.

Yes, it is true. Close on the heels of DMK in neighbouring Tamil Nadu State, Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu has promised to supply Colour TVs to all the poor people free of cost. The promise is part of Telugu Desam’s election manifesto, which was released by Naidu at a press conference on Thursday.

Naidu virtually promised heaven on the earth to the poor and middle class. He said all the poor families headed by women would get a monthly allowance of Rs 1500 and the middle class families will get Rs 1,000 each. The money would be directly deposited in the bank accounts of the heads of the family.

The TD president also announced, among others, a comprehensive health scheme for the poor and the middle class, which covers all diseases – from fever to heart diseases. What is more, all the families which would benefit from the fresh promises, would continue to get the benefits out of existing schemes in kind, such as weaker section housing, house sites and land distribution.  Now, it is for the people to decide whether Naidu’s promises are believable or unbelievable!

PRP says No Telangana movement

In what is going to be a serious embarrassment to Praja Rajyam Party president Chiranjeevi, senior PRP leader and former Union Minister P Sivasankar on Thursday asserted that there is no Telangana sentiment at all in the region.

While releasing the draft manifesto, Sivasankar said the demand for Telangana is more prevailing in the region, as was evident from the way Telangana Rashtra Samithi is fast losing its credibility and hold among the people. “Only a few vested interests and politically unemployed people are raising the issue for their own survival. The Telangana movement has perished,” Sivasankar said.

Ironically, in the same manifesto, the PRP said it would take steps for “Samajika Telangana” formation in tune with the people’s wish through a legitimate process, though it has not given any further clarity.

Sivasankar’s statement is said to be aimed at targeting Devender Goud, who merged his Nava Telangana Party with PRP recently. He opposed Goud’s entry into PRP, since it would reduce his own influence in the party. Now, it will be interesting how Goud would react on Sivasankar’s statement.

Mareppa rocks again with his extra mouth!!!

Former Marketing Minister M Mareppa, who was kicked out of the YSR cabinet, is yet to learn a lesson and he is back to foul-mouthing of media and his opponents.

Reacting to the reports that he might not get the ticket from Aluru this time, Mareppa fretted and fumed, saying it was a conspiracy by the media against him. “I can contest from any constituency and win the elections. Nobody can stop me,” he said.

He described Mahakootami as “kakula kootami” (a group of crows), with constituents shouting against one another. This kootami would not last long, he said.

Manifestos which make people beggars

The manifestos announced by TDPand PRP on Thursday make one wonder whether these parties are treating the voters as beggars, making them dependant on the government for every paisa.
Particularly, the Telugu Desam manifesto is horrible. Instead of empowering the people to earn a better livelihood, the TD says, if it comes to power, it would pay Rs 1500 to the poor families and Rs 1,000 to middle class families per month. The amount will be credited to the bank accounts of the people and they don’t even have to go banks to withdraw the amount; the government will give them electronic cash cards to draw the amount from ATMs. What does it mean? The people will become beggars and they don’t even have to beg at the doorstep, but can get the dole directly at their doorstep. What an idea, Babuji?
And Naidu promised colour televisions to all the poor people. What do they do with these TVs when they don’t have anything to make their both ends meet? Most of the poor dwell in huts without power connection. So, what’s the use of TVs for them? Will they be able to have cable connection or Dish facility? Can they afford power charges and monthly cable charges? How can they have entertainment with empty stomach? During his regime, Naidu provided LPG connections to the poor people under Deepam scheme. But the beneficiaries sold them away, as they could not afford to buy LPG cylinders at a high cost? Where is the guarantee that the TV sets do not go back to showrooms?
Coming to PRP’s election manifesto, Chiranjeevi promises 10-hour free power supply to farmers, which is practically impossible given the power availability now. Do farmers really need 10 hour supply? All that they want is quality power for seven hours. Secondly, he announces “Pasupu-Kunkuma” scheme for girls, under which certain amount would be deposited in the name of a girl child, who would be getting Rs 1 lakh at the age of 18 years. This is again a flop scheme, which was already tested. And the scheme to supply all cooking provisions for just Rs 100 would cost a heavy burden on the State exchequer.
First of all, it is doubtful whether the people would believe all these schemes of TD and PRP. The Congress is yet to come out with its manifesto, but indications are that the government would only promise to the people to carry on all the existing schemes till the saturation level is reached. The YSR government was able to convince the people that it was doing some productive job. Whether the people would get attracted to the new manifestos or believe the YSR’s government is what these elections will prove.

More jumpings in East Godavari by KAPU's

Kapu's are more in Godavari districts and it is famous for strongholds of Kapu community.

The biggest loser in this defection politics is the Telugu Desam. In East Godavari, this party has lost two major Kapu leaders in the last 24 hours – former Minister Metla Satyanarayana, who has been very senior in the party, resigned from TD and joined Praja Rajyam Party.

Secondly, another Kapu strongman in the district Mudragada Padmanabham, who has been waging a relentless battle for inclusion of Kapus in the BC list, also quit the TD, but preferred the Congress party.

While Metla’s decision is not surprising because his Amalapuram constituency has disappeared in the delimitation and there is no other place from where he can be fielded. So, he thought he would get a better chance in PRP, which has grown very strong in the district. But the surprising development is that of Mudragada, who was expected to join the PRP, but YSR has lured him into the Congress, because it is the only way to curtail the PRP impact in East Godavari district.

Interestingly, Congress also lost a Kapu leader, Jakkampudi Srinivasa Rao, brother of Minister Jakkampudi Rammohan Rao. This gentleman has joined the PRP.

CM in Dilema

In selecting candidates for next election ..i.e is his exercise of candidates’ selection commencing, Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy is learnt to be have developed second thoughts over dropping of sitting MLAs for the coming elections.

According to original plan, YSR was expected to deny tickets to at least 80 sitting MLAs and replace them with new faces. He put forth the same proposal before the Congress high command. Now, he is learnt to have changed his mind. Reason: Most of the MLAs, who suspected that they would not get tickets this time, approached PCC president D Srinivas and through him approached the high command. Huge amounts changed hands in this process and the high command, too, would not deny the PCC president’s recommendations.

Secondly, political equations have been rapidly changing in the State and those who do not get tickets can easily jump into the Telugu Desam or Praja Rajyam Party. And it is not sure whether the fresh faces fielded from their places would be able to face the elections boldly.

So, there might not be many droppings of sitting MLAs, except in a few places, sources say.