Telangana Assembly polls: Heated contest in Andole puts spotlight on roads, water woes

SANGAREDDY: The Andole Assembly constituency is an embodiment of all problems including societal and civic. Though welfare schemes are very attractive, they lost their edge because, for one who gets the benefit, 10 are being left out. ‘The roads in the constituency are horrible. One will end with broken bones if one travels on these roads, particularly the Metlakunta Road.

D Sanghameshwar, a resident of Chilvar village of Alladurgam mandal, quipped: “If a pregnant woman travels on this road to a hospital, she will deliver a baby before reaching the destination.”“The 50-km-long stretch of the road from Chilvar crossroads to Mettalkunta in the suburbs of Zaheerabad and from there to Bidar reminds one of the lunar surface. The road built 20 years ago, is now in dire need of repairs,” he added.

Sanghameshwar said that during the rainy season, many people riding bicycles and scooters on this road fall down, while heavy vehicles get stuck in the potholes. “There is no leader who cares for the commuters on this road, and instead, they (candidates) make hollow promises at the time of elections,” he remarked.

Raju from Jogipet said that most of the internal roads in the constituency limits are in a dilapidated condition and yet no repairs have been taken up for a very long time. “The welfare schemes, instead of bringing smiles on the faces of people, are leading to societal strife,” he added.

Ramesh, a young man from Chilvar village, said: “The welfare schemes introduced by the government had led to quarrels between relatives in the villages. For the next phase of the Dalit Bandhu implementation in our village, only six beneficiaries have been identified, causing heartburn among those whose names did not figure in the list.”

The locals complained that not even one double-bedroom house has been allotted in Vatpally and Alladurgam mandals. Apart from that, the main demand of the farmers in the constituency is that they want Singur water for irrigation of their crops. Though the government agreed to the demand, the required infrastructure is not yet in place. Though there are canals, as there are no distribution channels, many farmers do not get water for their fields.

A youth, Rajasekhar, said as the Andole constituency comes within the limits of two districts, it has become a problem for the citizens. Alladurgam, Tekmal, and Regode Mandals of the constituency come under Medak district, and there is a demand that at least these mandals should be included in Sangareddy district, he said, adding that Munipally Mandal, which is currently under Zaheerabad revenue division, should be included in Sangareddy or Andole revenue division.

Reserved for SCs since 1967

Established in 1952, Andole constituency is one of the five Assembly segments in the Sangareddy district, and it has been reserved for Scheduled Castes since 1967. In the current elections, BRS candidate Chanti Kranti Kiran, the incumbent MLA from the Andole constituency, faces competition from Damodar Rajanarsimha of the Congress and former minister P Babu Mohan of the BJP, setting the stage for a potential triangular contest in the constituency.

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