VIJAYAWADA: The State government is expecting the Central Cabinet which is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to consider and approve the proposal to accord statutory backing to special package promised to the State in lieu of Special Category Status (SCS).
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, during a review meeting at Velagapudi here on Tuesday, said: "The proposal for legal backing to package might come up before the Cabinet on Wednesday.''
In fact, Chandrababu Naidu has been bringing pressure on the Centre for according legal sanctity to package in the wake of the onslaught from Opposition that he had compromised on SCS though it had been guaranteed by the UPA II before it demitted office in 2014.
With YSRC chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan taking up cudgels against the State government for they described it as betrayal of State's interests, Naidu wanted the Centre to accord statutory protection to the offer of package.
The Centre had promised to facilitate sanction of funds up to Rs 3,500 crore under externally aided projects but without statutory backing to the promise, there is always the danger of the promise not materialising.
This proposal, as also 100 per cent funding for Polavaram Project, need to get approved by the Cabinet before legal sanctity could be provided for them and several other benefits which were promised as part of package.