Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president N. Raghuveera Reddy said there is no meaning in the gesture of the State government to give a festival gift to the poor of the State after cancelling Congress welfare schemes to the tune of Rs. 2,000 crore.
Addressing participants of a rangoli contest organised by Mahila Congress here on Monday the PCC chief said that pension was cancelled for 12 lakh beneficiaries, ration cards were cancelled for 17.5 lakh beneficiaries and 64 lakh units of ration were reduced for 44 lakh ration-cardholders.
Taking other welfare benefits cancelled into consideration the new government pruned benefits to the tune of Rs. 2,000 crore that were given to the eligible by the former Congress government, he said.
“What will the people do for the rest of the year? What kind of a gift is this?” he asked. He said there was nothing for the farmers and the women of the State to celebrate this festival. He hoped that “good sense” would prevail on the Telugu Desam government and it would waive loans to farmers, DWCRA and MEPMA group members, and weavers as it promised, at least by the next Sankranti.
Talking to the women in the gathering, the PCC chief said that the Congress, under the leadership of Ms. Gandhi, tried to amend the Constitution to reserve 33 per cent of the seats in Parliament for women.
The party could not, however, do it because it lacked the necessary strength.
There is no meaning in giving a festival gift to the poor after cancelling Congress welfare schemes.
N. Raghuveera Reddy,
APCC president
