Shah sets deadline to sort out AP, TS issues

HYDERABAD: The Telangana state government on Sunday claimed to have ‘worked diligently’ with the residual Andhra Pradesh in sorting out the bifurcation issues even as Union home minister Amit Shah set one month-time frame for completing the asset distribution between the two states.

Participating on behalf of Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao in the Southern Zonal Council meeting in Tirupati, Telangana state home minister Mahmood Ali assured that the issues pending in courts and other fora would also be discussed with the neighbouring state and “sort them out in an amicable manner” within the framework of the AP Reorganisation Act 2014. “We have successfully divided over 10 lakh employees in a timely and transparent manner,” he pointed out.

Highly placed sources told Deccan Chronicle that Telangana state had even appreciated the Centre for “guiding both the states on various critical issues.” It also said the “decisive and collective action taken by the Centre and the state governments” had ensured that people’s lives and livelihoods were protected.  

Significantly, the brief introductory speech of the home minister avoided the most contentious issues like river water sharing and the Telangana’s demand for setting up new tribunal for Krishna waters, while it focussed on Chief Minister’s various initiatives like Rythu Bandhu, KCR health kits and uninterrupted power supply to farm sector. Maintaining that the growth of a nation largely depended on the health of its workforce, Mahmood Ali said the health initiatives of his government helped bring down the infant mortality rate.

Sources said the neighbouring state had strongly pitched for Rs 6,000 crore dues to be paid by the Telangana power generating utility to its AP counterpart. The Telangana officials, however, listed out various other dues from AP which they said would be more than the Genco dues. Shah is said to have asked both the governments to complete the asset distribution within a month.

The Union home minister also appreciated Andhra Pradesh for being top among the southern states in pursuing cases of violence against women and children and filing charge-sheets within two months of the incident. In another gesture of appreciating the AP police’ training capabilities, Shah offered to bear the entire cost of setting up an ultra modern training facility including that of the land. He said the greyhounds training module should be extended to other paramilitary forces in the proposed institute.

Mahmood Ali explained initiatives like SHE teams and Bharosa Centres yielding good results and helping in effective policing and investigating crimes against women and children.