

VIJAYAWADA: Retired IPS officer, former Intelligence chief and Centre for Liberty chairman AB Venkateswara Rao on Monday accused the coalition government of failing to curb alleged illegal mining and abuse of power, claiming both the YSRCP regime and present administration had benefited contractors via corrupt practices.
Addressing a press conference organised by Centre for Liberty, Rao, Nalamothu Chakravarthy, Ajay Malla Reddy and Yedururi Srinivas Reddy alleged that agencies collecting payments were exploiting farmers and rural residents. They alleged illegal collections from vehicles transporting finished products, including granite tiles, causing losses by bypassing statutory payments.
The representatives claimed repeated complaints to police and revenue officials had yielded little action.
They demanded removal of unauthorised checkpoints, arrest of those involved, cancellation of the contract and a probe into the alleged fake QR-code racket. They urged villagers to report alleged coercive collections through their emergency contact number, 9959503351.