TDP accepts Minister's challenge on riparian issue

Hyderabad, Jan 9 (UNI) Maintaining that the state Government's decision to expand the capacity of the Potireddypadu head regulator to 44,000 cusecs, was deterimental to other regions in the state, the Telugu Desam Party(TDP) today accepted Irrigation Minister P Lakshmaiah's challenge to the opposition to come for a open debate on the issue.

Referring to the Minister's offer to resign, if it was proved the project would affect Telangana and Coastal Andhra regions, TDP Legislature Party Deputy Leader N Janardhan Reddy contended that the riparian rights of the farmers in Mahboobnagar and Nalgonda districts in the Telangana region as also Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam, West Godavari in the Andhra region would be adversely affected.

''The TDP is ready for public debate at any place and any time fixed by the Minister,'' he added.

Locating the Head regulator at 880 ft at Srisailam would facilitate taking away of assured waters of the lower riparian districts in Andhra and Telangana regions to Rayalaseema, the home region of the Chief Minister, senior TDP leader K Sivaprasada Rao claimed. ''In the first place, the Government should come out with a comprehensive water policy and make public how it proposed to take only flood waters to Rayalseema,'' he demanded.

Claiming that collection of registration fee from ailing public at Government hospitals was against the Congress party's poll promise to the people, Dr Rao contended the Government hospitals were in bad shape due to inadequate budgetary allocation.

Former Law Minister R Chandrasekar attributed the poor health situation to exodus of doctors and the absence of a full-fledged Health Minister to take remedial steps.

UNI