NETA NATTER | KTR REMINISCES ABOUT HIS LOST MEDICAL CAREER
It isn’t often that someone who wants to become a doctor, or an IAS officer, ends up in a place from where he or she can actually make a difference on a large scale. Such is the place Telangana IT minister K.T. Rama Rao said he finds himself in. The other day in Sircilla, at the inaugural of the government medical college, Rama Rao during a chat with medical students, said there was a time when he wrote the medical entrance and got the 1,600 rank but there were not enough seats those days. Now, with Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao’s plan for one government medical college in every district, students receiving ranks of up to 10,000 can pursue their dreams of becoming a doctor. “I had the chance to get a B Pharmacy seat with my rank. But my mother wanted me to become a doctor and my father wanted to see me as an IAS officer. I could neither become a doctor nor an IAS officer but ended up as a politician,” Rama Rao said. What he didn’t say was that as a politician, he has the right prescriptions for the problems faced by people, perhaps a position where he can make a larger difference than what he earlier aspired for.
SABITHA SETS BAD EXAMPLE WITH ACT OF KINDNESS?
Education minister Sabitha Indra Reddy may have her heart in the right place but her recent act of giving a lift to two little kids on their way home has left netizens wondering if she just set a very bad example for children’s safety issues. Sabitha stopped her convoy when she saw two little girls heading back home and had them travel with her for a short distance before they were dropped at their homes, with the minister following it up with a word with the parents. Soon a video of her act began doing the rounds on social media. The question that followed was about the kind of message Sabitha wanted to send little kids, irrespective of the “awww such a nice act” reactions from some. Is it okay for children to get into cars with strangers — what if the people offering a lift are not safe for the children to be around? Even the police warn children against going with strangers or accepting sweets or chocolates or toys because you just don’t know the motive of why an adult would want to befriend a kid these days.
NAIDU BATTLES MOSQUITOES IN JAIL
There was a time when TD chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, during his term as AP chief minister, declared a war on mosquitoes. After all, those pesky little buzzing insects can make life miserable for people. But now, if what the TD leaders are saying is anything to go by, Naidu, the then anti-mosquito warrior, is facing a bite back in the Rajamahendravaram Central Prison where he is lodged in the skill development scam case. Former TD finance minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu who recently visited Naidu, said the former chief minister was suffering from a mosquito menace in the jail and requested the government as well as the jail authorities to provide him an air-conditioned room. Naidu’s son N Lokesh, too is worried over the mosquito menace in the jail saying that his father is having to fend off mosquitoes even as he battles the YSRC government over the case he was arrested in connection with.
CONG. LEADERS MIFFED WITH SHORT STAGE TIME
A public meeting is never easy to conduct, especially when a galaxy of star politicians and top leaders share the dais. The time spent by each speaker is monitored so the star attractions can get a few more minutes to speak directly with the people. The other day at Tukkuguda, this was the case with Congress in-charge for Telangana state Manikrao Thakre keeping an eagle eye on the watch and nudging state leaders not to exceed their allotted few minutes. Apparently, this did not go down well with some, but with the clock ticking for the upcoming elections, some state-level leaders had no option but to wind down their speeches quickly.
ACTOR VISHAL SIDES WITH NAIDU ON IRREGULAR ARREST
Tamil actor Vishal during a function in Hyderabad to celebrate the success of his movie Mark Antony, found himself at the centre of a social media storm after saying TD president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s arrest should have been based on concrete evidence. This set off intense speculation if Vishal was pitching for a role in the TD: After all he traces his roots back to Kuppam, Naidu’s constituency. Vishal had previously expressed support for YSRC leader and Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, and had even said if he had the chance to vote from Andhra Pradesh, his vote would go to Jagan.