*TDP Coalition betrayed handloom weavers*

Tadepalli, July 17: YSRCP MLC Murugudu Hanumantha Rao accused the TDP-led coalition government of betraying handloom weavers by neglecting the sector for the past two years and drastically reducing the number of beneficiaries under welfare schemes. Speaking at the YSRCP central office on Friday, he said the previous YSRCP government under Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had provided Rs. 24,000 every year to more than 81,000 handloom workers for five consecutive years after conducting transparent enumeration. Before the elections, Chandrababu Naidu had promised assistance to about 93,000 weavers, but after coming to power the government announced benefits for only around 54,000 workers. He demanded an explanation for excluding nearly 26,000 weavers.
Hanumantha Rao said the coalition government has weakened APCO by failing to release funds, conduct elections, or strengthen its administration. Payments due to cooperative societies have been delayed, pushing many into debt and financial distress. He also said the government ignored repeated appeals from workers' unions and failed to fulfil its promise of securing the removal of GST on handloom products. He demanded that the government immediately conduct a fresh and complete enumeration, extend assistance with arrears to every eligible weaver owning a loom, revive APCO through elections, and release the pending financial support for the last two years to protect the handloom sector.