HYDERABAD: Against the backdrop of tension between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana over different issues, President Pranab Mukherjee today called upon the two states to live together in peace and harmony fostering good neighbourly relations.
"We can choose our friends but we can't choose our neighbours," the President said, stressing that a choice is to be made whether the neighbours co-exist in harmony or otherswise.
Mukherjee, here for his customary southern sojourn, was speaking at an event where he received the first copy of a book by Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao.
He also quoted one of the Ten Commandments of the Bible 'love your neighbour' to underscore his message, adding "Work in close harmony because, we belong to India."
Stating that Hyderabad is an important region of the country having made rapid progress in areas like Information Technology bringing its benefits to other parts of the country as well, Mukherjee said it is important that both states lived in harmony and contributed further to the nation's progress.
The TDP Government in Andhra Pradesh and its TRS counterpart in Telengana have late been at loggerheads, mostly on local political issues.