Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) [India], September 20 (ANI): YSRCP MLA Gudivada Amarnath on Saturday criticised Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu over his visit to Visakhapatnam, alleging that the Chief Minister was focusing on event management and publicity instead of addressing pressing issues faced by residents, particularly the drinking water shortage in the city.
Targeting the Chief Minister's outreach and review programmes in the port city, the YSRCP leader alleged that the visit did not address the immediate concerns of the people and that the drinking water crisis remained a major issue in Visakhapatnam.
"Today's CM Chandra Babu Naidu's program in Visakhapatnam once again showcases his event management skills, publicity skills and marketing skills. People in Visakhapatnam expect some issues to be solved when his visit is there in Visakhapatnam. Today's major issue in Visakhapatnam is drinking water. In the last 15 days, residential people are not getting water every day," Amarnath said.
Expressing concern over the difficulties being faced by residents due to the alleged shortage of drinking water, the former minister announced that his party would launch an agitation to press the state government to take immediate steps to address the crisis.
"The YSR Congress Party will fight for this, will stand by the people of the city of Visakhapatnam, will do a demonstration to get a solution from the government and will soon announce the date of this demonstration. I urge the people of Visakhapatnam to come and join this protest so that the government will come down and show us a solution to the scarcity of this city," he added.
Earlier on Thursday, former Chief Minister and YSRCP President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy alleged that Andhra Pradesh was facing a severe drought and claimed that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's alleged failure to take timely measures had worsened the situation.
“This is not merely a natural drought. The Chief Minister’s failure to respond in time has made the situation more serious,” he said.
As per the official release, YS Jagan held a video conference with YSRCP Regional Coordinators and District Presidents and reviewed the drought conditions, crop losses, water scarcity and the hardships being faced by farmers across the State.
“The State is not suffering from the El Niño effect, but from the ‘Yellow Niño effect’,” he remarked. "Chandrababu was warned about El Niño on February 4, but took no follow-up action. Despite continuous rainfall deficits in June, July and August, the government failed to declare drought-hit mandals, arrange alternative seeds, supply fodder or seek additional workdays from the Centre under (VB-G RAM G) scheme."
YS Jagan said the State had recorded a rainfall deficit of more than 51 per cent from the beginning of the Kharif season until September 16. Nearly 628 of the 688 mandals were facing drought-like conditions, while around 332 mandals were experiencing severe drought.
Against the normal Kharif cultivation area of 76 lakh acres, crops were sown in only 56.4 lakh acres. Nearly 20 lakh acres remained unsown.
Farmers who trusted the government’s assurances and began cultivation suffered losses ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 30,000 per acre. Red gram, cotton, groundnut, maize, paddy and fruit orchards were severely affected.
He accused the government of wasting Srisailam water on power generation instead of supplying it to Rayalaseema. He also criticised Chandrababu’s silence over Telangana’s lift projects near Pulichintala and alleged that the government was compromising on Polavaram’s full storage capacity. “When the rainfall deficit was clearly visible, the government remained busy switching on pumps, lifting gates and posing for photographs,” he said. (ANI)
YSRCP leader Gudivada Amarnath slams CM Naidu over Visakhapatnam visit, announces protest over drinking water crisis
