Vijayawada, June 30: YSRCP leaders strongly opposed the demolition of the Vidyadharapuram RTC Depot, stating that it marks the beginning of a larger plan to privatise APSRTC assets across Andhra Pradesh. Former Minister Vellampalli Srinivasa Rao, NTR District YSRCP President Devineni Avinash and former MLA Malladi Vishnu inspected the demolished depot site and said the Coalition Government is using the introduction of electric buses as a pretext to hand over valuable RTC lands to private entities. They stated that the demolition is not an isolated incident but the first step in transferring public transport infrastructure worth nearly Rs. 6,000 crore into private hands while weakening the State-owned transport system.
Vellampalli Srinivasa Rao said the government has taken decisions affecting more than 30,000 RTC employees without consulting either workers or the public. He said RTC lands, depots and assets must remain under RTC ownership and that YSRCP is prepared to launch any democratic movement necessary to safeguard public property and protect employees' interests.
Devineni Avinash said the Coalition Government has accelerated the transfer of valuable government and RTC lands to private interests. He recalled that YSRCP had earlier opposed the proposed allocation of prime RTC land on Eluru Road in Vijayawada for the Lulu Mall project and said the same model is now being repeated at Vidyadharapuram. He stated that the government is moving ahead with plans to privatize land belonging to 12 RTC depots across the State and pledged to mobilize workers and the public to resist the move.
Former MLA Malladi Vishnu said that after sand, soil and hill resources, the government has now turned its attention to valuable RTC properties. He noted that the Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy government created a Rs. 5,000 crore stabilization fund for RTC and granted government employee status to nearly 50,000 RTC workers. He said YSRCP would work with trade unions, public organizations and political parties to stop RTC privatization and protect public transport assets.
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