*Artificial fuel crisis and harassment of Secretariat employees show governance failure*

Tadepalli, April 30: YSRCP Employees and Pensioners Wing State President Nalamaru Chandrasekhar Reddy strongly criticised the coalition government for subjecting both the public and government employees to severe hardship, alleging that the ongoing petrol and diesel shortage in Andhra Pradesh is an artificially created crisis resulting from administrative failure. Addressing the media at the YSRCP central office in Tadepalli, he questioned why fuel shortages are being witnessed only in Andhra Pradesh while neighbouring states have adequate supply, and condemned the government for remaining indifferent as people stand in long queues day and night at fuel stations.
He further stated that the government is targeting village and ward secretariat employees appointed during the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government, treating them with hostility and disrespect. He criticised the assignment of duties such as managing queues and even overseeing bathroom facilities at religious places during festivals, calling it humiliating and degrading. Around 6,200 secretariat staff have been reportedly sent on deputation to unrelated departments, ignoring their designated roles and job charts, effectively treating them like casual labourers.
Chandrasekhar Reddy also slammed Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s remarks on salary payments, stating that paying employees is the government’s responsibility and not an act of charity. He demanded immediate release of pending dues, notional increments, and timely salaries, and urged the government to abandon its vindictive approach and treat employees with dignity. He warned that continued neglect and harassment would provoke widespread unrest among employees and pensioners across the state.