Apparently succumbing to the pressures from the party leaders from Rayalaseema on the separate Seema statehood issue, YSR Congress party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy has decided to take up the issue, albeit indirectly, in the name of fighting against regional imbalances.
Hitherto, Jagan was not ready to wage a battle in support of separate Rayalaseema demand as he was apprehensive that he might lose the ground in coastal Andhra altogether.
However, he is under pressure from his own party leaders from Seema to fight against at least injustice meted out to the region. On Saturday, Jagan held a meeting with party leaders from Rayalaseema to discuss the issue.
Sources said the leaders asked Jagan to raise his voice over neglect of Rayaseema region by the Chandrababu Naidu government at the cost of coastal Andhra. However, Jagan said he would take up the issue in general in the name of regional imbalances being maintained by the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on all fronts, from irrigation to infrastructure development.
He told the party leaders that the TDP government had not been implementing any of the promises made to the people of Rayalaseema and welfare schemes are not reaching to the people.
He said he would explain to the people that the Pattiseema project was of no use to Rayalaseema as not even a single drop of water would reach any of the four districts.
Jagan felt that the Chief Minister was completely concentrating on Amaravati and on Coastal belt forgetting the Rayalaseema.
"Let us fight for balanced development, particularly the four districts of Rayalaseema. We demand a decentralised development," sources quoting Jagan said.
