The Union government has decided against a 'special status' to AP. Instead, the State will now get a special incentive package with focus on industrial development.
AP finance officials, who returned to Hyderabad on Friday after camping in Delhi for three days, said that Union finance minister Arun Jaitley had cleared a special incentive package for AP in lieu of the special status promised by the previous UPA government.
The Centre made it clear that special status for AP is not possible as a similar demand has been made by Odisha, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and against this backdrop, AP has been persuaded to agree for a Centre-sponsored special incentive package.
That, other states have made a similar request for ‘special status’ is no excuse for denying it to AP. None of those States have had to go through the turmoil of bifurcation in recent times. Besides, Andhra Pradesh which is solely responsible for developing Hyderabad has lost the city to Telangana. Hyderabad in united AP generated 55% of the revenues of the State.
Besides, the ‘Special Status’ was something that was promised to AP in ‘Parliament’. If a promise made in Parliament cannot be kept by the ruling party, then they can do no good to the nation!
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