YSR stood for rural uplift, not Naidu: YSRCP

Hyderabad, July 22,2013: Ridiculing TDP leader N Chandrababu
Naidu for his tall claims that he is the champion of Panchayat Raj
institutions, YSR Congress has said his statement is full of blatant lies as it
was YS Rajasekhar Reddy who strived for rural development.

“Naidu’s statement that YSR was against village development
will have no takers, as Naidu carries with him the tag of World Bank Agent
while YSR has rolled a green carpet in the rural areas through his pro-farmer
schemes,” party MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy told reporters here on Monday.

YSR is the face of rural Andhra Pradesh and people in
villages identify themselves with him as the Jala Yagnam, Aarogyasri, Fees
Reimbursement, Pavala Vaddi and other schemes have immensely benefitted the
rural areas.

Naidu on the other hand has the dubious distinction of
calling agriculture as a wasteful vocation as it would yield nothing
worthwhile. He has been advocating the World Bank policies and was responsible
for people moving away from villages.

During TDP term, farmers were driven to indebtedness which
led to suicides as the power tariff was high, input subsidies were non
existence and Naidu was inclined towards corporatisation leaving the rural
areas in lurch.

YSR brought back life into the rural areas, with loan
waiver, free power and other welfare schemes. Naidu now claiming that he is the
champion of panchayat raj institutions is absurd. During YSR term his party won
more than 78 per cent of the local bodies’ elections while TDP could hardly get
30 per cent mandate, he said.

The scenario did not change much even now and the tall
claims of Naidu will not be believed by the people as they have experienced the
nine-year misrule of Chandrababu Naidu, he said.

People’s memory is not
short and they will teach a lesson to the TDP, he said and quoted from Naidu’s
book “Mee Kosam” in which he undermined the village and rural institutions.
Naidu has questioned the importance of Self Help Groups and necessity of
sarpanches in the book and demeaned the elected representatives.

He wanted sarpanches to
follow the officials and their instructions and not the other way. Elected
representatives were being directed by nodal officers in TDP regime which spelt
doom for the villages while YSR has given a new lease of life to the panchayat
raj institutions, he said.