Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada   

Just a call away!

It was a major relief for reporters when they heard new District Collector Peeyush Kumar assuring them that he would be “accessible” to them. Having faced the problem of not being able to reach the previous two Collectors on phone, the reporters were mighty relieved when Peeyush Kumar announced his personal mobile phone number at the maiden press conference he addressed after taking charge. Incidentally, it is the same number he has been carrying from the days of working as Sub-Collector in Vijayawada. The Collector asked the mediapersons not to hesitate to call him directly whenever they need any clarification or information. He will probably be flooded with calls once he is back from leave on July 6.

It was a paradoxically culpable situation that raised many an eyebrow in the vicinity. The campus of a municipal corporation school was all spruced up for the visit of Minister for Secondary Education Dokka Manikya Varaprasad as part of Badi Baata, a literacy drive launched across the State to enroll all school-age children into schools.

While everybody was busy making brisk arrangements scurrying from one end of the campus to the other, a shabbily dressed little boy, barely of 10 years, was seen removing soil dug out for planting saplings on the school premises. A news photographer who noticed it, tried to capture the scene in his camera. A few organisers present there sensed trouble and quickly pulled the boy out of the sight of the cameraman and sent him out. The organisers would have done well to practise what they have been preaching, i.e. to fight child labour menace by enrolling children in schools. Charity, as the adage goes, begins at home.

A good airport is a basic requirement for any developing city to attract big industrial houses and corporate bodies to come and invest. Vijayawada has long been considered a city that faces the hardship of lack of a good and developed airport. If there is any demand for greater development of the airport at Gannavaram, it is coming from the industry alone. The political establishment, strangely, is silent on this aspect. When asked why not many efforts are being made for the expansion of the airport on a long-term basis, a ruling party leader in the city counter-posed whether there was any need to be in a hurry on this. The priority should be to attend to the poor people’s needs and resolving their problems, he said, smartly blocking any further talk on the topic.

The diminutive cricketer Savitha Kumari, who arrived in Vijayawada from Thiruvananthapuram in a dramatic manner, won the hearts of many for her guts to take on an excluded ACA official who is known for his political connections. Women, girls and well-wishers came in hordes to the Gannavaram airport with bouquets and garlands to pledge their support to her. Slogans comparing her to senior IPS officer Kiran Bedi rent the air. Without mincing words, Savitha lambasted the ‘inappropriate’ behaviour of V. Chamundeswaranath and vowed to fight against the ‘discrimination’ being allegedly meted out to some women cricketers. At last, somebody has decided to bell the cat.

Lack of accessibility and communication gap are often common complaints the netas have against the babus. But the new set of officers posted in the district seemed to have made a statement of sorts by giving wide publicity in the media to their mobile numbers. Superintendent of Police S.B. Bagchi who took over from Mahesh Chandra Laddha set the trend by asking people to call him and air their grievance at any time. The result was astounding with the SP receiving 70 calls from the public within a span of three hours in the morning. Municipal Commissioner K. Ilambarthi too followed suit and according to corporation sources, he got about 65 calls on the first day. Joint Collector Gaurav Uppal too had a heady start and started checks on fair price shops, petrol bunks soon after taking charge. Gone were the days when getting access to top officers was almost impossible. The new style has ringed in much needed ‘change’ in the attitude of offcialdom. A refreshing change in offing?

K. Srimali,

P. Sujatha Varma, G. Ravikiran, J. R. Shridharan in Vijayawada and P.Samuel Jonathan in Guntur

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