AP Cabinet nod for Draft Bills

Hyderabad, Oct 23 (UNI) The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet today approved a Draft Bill, replacing the Ordinance amending the 'AP Chit Fund Act' for introduction during next month's Winter Session of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.

The Bill intends to make the provisions of the Act more effective and safeguard investors interests, Information Minister A Ramanarayana Reddy told reporters.

The Cabinet also approved Draft Bills to enhance Value-Added Tax (VAT) on 'gutka' and other intoxicants to 25 per cent, to make Legislative Council members ex-officio members of the local bodies and reduce payment categories to MLAs and MLCs to three heads as against seven at the present.

Accepting 90 recommendations of the Koneru Ranga Rao on land reforms, the Cabinet forwarded two recommendations to the committee for reconsideration and rejected 12 as ''unimplementable.'' UNI