VIJAYAWADA: Besides raising unresolved matters pertaining to Andhra Pradesh, YSRC Parliamentary Party leader V Vijayasai Reddy also spoke of farmers’ and women’s issues, caste-wise enumeration of backward classes and cyber security while participating in the All-Party meeting convened by the BJP-led NDA ahead of the Budget Session in New Delhi on Monday.
Stating that Special Category Status (SCS) was promised to the State on the floor of the Parliament at the time of bifurcation, the Rajya Sabha MP said, “This commitment must be honoured keeping in mind the losses suffered by residual Andhra Pradesh due to the unjust way in which the State was bifurcated.”
He further pointed out that various assurances made on the floor of the Parliament during the bifurcation and obligations under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 are yet to be fulfilled by the Centre.
The YSRC leader reiterated the State’s demands pertaining to the Polavaram Irrigation Project. He requested timely clearance of pending issues, including investment clearance for Revised Cost Estimate - II (`55,549 crore), funding for drinking water components (`4,068 crore), removal of component-wise restrictions (`2,937 crore) and processing of land acquisition/rehabilitation and resettlement (LA/R&R) bills under Direct Benefit Transfer.
Further Vijayasai Reddy said, “New government medical colleges are required in the State as private investment for super-specialty hospitals is not forthcoming due to the lack of Tier-I cities post-bifurcation. Financial assistance is needed for establishing 12 new government medical colleges to ensure that each district has at least one government medical college.”
Speaking on women’s issues, the legislator suggested that on March 8, celebrated as International Women’s Day, the Parliament should discuss the issues faced by women in India. “Problems like women’s safety, education, employment, and nutrition should discussed during the session. The long-standing demand for 33% reservation for women in Union and State legislatures should also be discussed,” he said.
With regard to farmers’ issues, he observed that though the Farm Bills were repealed more than a year ago, many demands of the farmers, including legal right to MSP for all crops, remain unaddressed. “The lack of legal guarantee for MSP exposes farmers to huge financial risks,” he said.
On developing a Blue Economy, Vijayasai Reddy noted that India has a vast coastline which provides opportunities to promote aquaculture. “Our coastal economy supports over three crore people and contributes enormously to the GDP. A discussion on how India can improve its focus on Blue Economy should also be taken up,” he said.
The MP also wanted the Centre to take up the issue of caste-wise enumeration of backward classes in the upcoming decennial census to formulate scientific policies for their welfare. Further, Vijayasai Reddy pointed out that as per government data, cyber attacks in India have been constantly increasing – from 53,000 incidents in 2017 to a whopping 14 lakh in 2021. “The recent ransomware attack on AIIMS-Delhi shed light on the vulnerabilities in our cyber security infrastructure. This issue should also be taken up for discussion,” he concluded.