Pawan should draw a cautionary lesson or two from his brother Chiranjeevi who, despite a fan base which was three times bigger, failed to make it in politics on his own, says Vicky Nanjappa
Telugu Desam Party chief N Chandrababu Naidu blamed the ruling Congress for the present state of affairs in Andhra Pradesh and asked the party to bail the state out of the crisis. "This has become such a complex issue that divisions have taken place in political parties. Congress is responsible for this and they should solve the problem," Naidu, on a tour of West Godavari and East Godavari districts in coastal Andhra, said at Tanuku.
The Congress top brass late Thursday night assured its agitating legislators of Andhra Pradesh that "no whip" will be issued to vote in favour of a separate statehood resolution, if and when it comes in the Assembly.
The promises of yore about bringing Telangana on par with the rest of Andhra Pradesh has been on paper and the intent not honourably translated into reality on ground. And those who prevented that from happening comprise the very section which is seeking to prevent, with unprecedented defiance, the creation of a new state. All political parties, except the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi have gone back on their poll assurances of Telangana's statehood
Congress Members of Legislative Assembly from Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra on Monday decided to mount pressure on Members of Parliament from the regions to quit their posts and fight against the proposed division of Andhra Pradesh.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has assured Congress MPs from Andhra Pradesh that nothing will be done in haste on the creation of a separate state of Telangana, said senior party leader K S Rao.
The NDRF chief said initial reports suggested that due to the impact of the cyclone, buildings and some communication towers were destroyed.
Flood-ravaged AP heaves sigh of relief as depression further weakens
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India's fear of small states derives from memories of Partition and the paranoid view that it will break up under 'too many' states. It's time to shed such fears and bite the 'states' reorganisation' bullet. India won't crumble under a few more Telanganas, Vidarbhas or Gorkhalands, says Praful Bidwai.
The Congress knew that Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra Pradesh are lost for a long time as Y S Jaganmohan Reddy's leadership is taking deep roots. It also knew that if the next government is formed by the NDA then Telangana will definitely be created depriving them any credit. This pushed the Congress to finally endorse the new state. But the huge risk behind the decision and the uncertainties that go with it are making Congress nervous, says Sheela Bhatt.
the money involved is more than Rs 2,000 crore across Andhra Pradesh
Lakhs of voters will have to bear the searing heat when they step out to exercise their franchise in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Friday.
Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Friday described the protests in Seemandhra region against bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh as quite natural, saying wherever a new state is carved out, such feelings are bound to come. Shinde also ruled out the possibility of creating any more states in the country.
'There's also a possibility of the cyclonic system changing its course, thus avoiding a landfall in Odisha'
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday announced an interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore each for Andhra Pradesh and Odisha for relief and rehabilitation in the wake of destruction caused by cyclone Phailin.
Cyclone 'Phailin', which was to make landfall two days from now, possibly near Gopalpur in Odisha and in north Andhra Pradesh, on Thursday intensified into a severe cyclonic storm travelling slightly northwest and lying about 800 km from Paradip in Odisha.
The name 'Laila' which means dark-haired beauty or night in Persian was suggested by Pakistan to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) which is tasked by the World Meteorological Organisation to track and name cyclones in the northern Indian Ocean, an IMD official said.
President Pranab Mukherjee has given his nod to the Telangana Bill, which is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.
Holi was celebrated with pomp and splendor across India on Friday, with people soaking in the festivities by smearing 'gulaal' on each other and exchanging greetings and sweets. Homes and streets wore a colourful look as the revellers splashed colours and feasted on traditional delicacies. Public transport did not ply in the morning in most major cities while metro services started functioning from noon. As Holi coincided with the second Friday prayers during the holy Islamic month of Ramzan, security -- including increased patrolling and picketing -- was beefed up in several states. In Delhi, more than 25,000 security personnel were deployed. Police closely monitored about 300 sensitive areas with CCTV cameras and drones.
A day-long bandh called by United Andhra supporters, including Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress, against draft Telangana Bill hit essential services in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema districts on Friday, inconveniencing several citizens.
A cyclonic circulation lies over the southeast Bay of Bengal and the adjoining south Andaman Sea extending up to middle tropospheric levels. Under its influence, a low pressure area is very likely to form over the southeast Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood during the next 24 hours.
India's private and state government-owned ports (non-major ports) continued to grow faster than those owned by the Centre (major ports) through the first three quarters of 2023-24 (FY24), cargo handling data shows. At 604 million metric tonnes (mmt), cargo at major ports grew by 5 per cent between April and December, while non-major ports' cargo traffic growth was 11 per cent at 531 mmt. During December 2023, central government-owned ports in India handled cargo volumes of 69.9 mmt, a tepid year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth of 0.7 per cent.
Stifling heat has killed more than 1,242 people in India in less than one week.
Discussion on the draft Bill for the formation of separate Telangana, could not be taken up in Andhra Pradesh Assembly today as MLAs from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema opposed to the move and did not allow the proceedings, due to which the House was adjourned for the day.
Heavy rain in coastal Andhra Pradesh in the wake of Cyclone Laila has paralysed industrial activity in the state, including closure of oil rigs in the Krishna-Godavari Basin. Cargo handling at ports also suffered due to the incessant rain.
Defying shoot-at-sight orders and a curfew, anti-bifurcation agitators on Sunday hit the streets in Vizianagaram town and other parts of the district and clashed with police.
A day after 16 YSR Congress MLAs and one from Congress announced resignations in support of united Andhra Pradesh, two more ruling party legislators from non-Telangana regions today said they would also quit as the central leadership moves towards a decision on statehood.
Anti-Telangana activists on Sunday held protests on railway tracks here delaying at least two long-distance trains, the police said.
Union Minister of State for Commerce Daggubati Purandeswari on Saturday indicated that Congress ministers and Members of Parliament from Seemandhra would vote against the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill-2013 in Parliament if the Centre did not concede to their demands over protecting the interests of people of their region.
Come June 1, the premises that serve as the Andhra Pradesh assembly would have two sittings. In the morning it would serve as the assembly for Seemandhra and in the afternoon, it would act as the Telangana assembly. Aditi Phadnis and Dasarath Reddy report
Two thermal power stations at Vijayawada and Kadapa went into steam on Friday as power employees in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions of Andhra Pradesh resumed work after calling off their indefinite strike "temporarily" in view of cyclonic storm Phailan.
Ten to 20 days of heatwave are expected against the normal of four to eight days in the entire April-June period.
The MPs are learnt to have blamed Union Home Minister P Chidambaram for the wording and timing of his announcement on Telangana, which they said has sent the message that the Centre is agreeable to the splitting of Andhra Pradesh and that now it is just a matter of time before the new state is born.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday assured a delegation of Congress Members of Parliament from coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalseema regions that a decision on the Telangana issue could be taken by Tuesday.
The Kalyani Group's flagship company Bharat Forge is planning to make a big foray into the power sector with an investment of up to Rs 50,000 crore (Rs 500 billion) and a targeted generation capacity of up to 10,000 MW, over the next ten years.
Heavy rains caused by cyclonic storm Nilam have left a trail of destruction and thrown life out of gear in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh. The state government announced on Saturday evening that nine people have been killed in rain-related incidents in different districts in the wake of the cyclonic storm and standing crop in 1.79 lakh hectares was damaged, as per preliminary estimates.
Control Rooms were set up in all the coastal districts and the situation was being monitored round-the-clock.
'We have not even used 0.1% of the available resources.'
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