Opposition stages walkout to protest 'collapse' of PDS

Hyderabad, Feb 15 (UNI) Members of the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the CPI(M) staged a walkout in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly to protest the Congress governments alleged failure to get adequate essential commodities from the Union Government.

TDP legislature party deputy leader T Devender Goud, who led his party members out of the House, alleged that the Rajasekhara Reddy government was incapable of convincing the Congress-led UPA government to release adequate quota of essential commodities to the state following which different sections of the people. particularly those living Below the Poverty Line (BPL) were hit hard.

Revenue Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao put the blame on the previous TDP government for the present 'sorry state of affairs' and maintained that the Congress had issued 39 lakh ration cards.

Efforts were on to further streamline the Public Distribution System (PDS), he said asserting that the TDP had no moral right to criticise the government on the issue since it had only issued ration cards to the TDP workers.

There were instances of ration dealers holding the bulk of ration cards meant for the poor and siphoning of essential commodities, he alleged.

Before leading the Marxist members out of the House CPI(M) floor leader Nomula Narasimhaiah lamented that though the government had issued fresh ration cards, they were of no use to the people since no ration was available for their consumption.

CPI floor leader Ch Venkata Reddy All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Musmlimeen (AIMIM) floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi and TRS legislator and former minister Nayani Narasimha Reddy also registered their parties' protest, stating that neither kerosene nor cooking gas were available to the common man.

UNI