Rs 20 crore spent on Telangana committee

New Delhi, Mar 8: The government has spent more than Rs 20 crore on the Srikrishna Committee which was constituted to hold consultations with all sections of people, groups and political parties in Andhra Pradesh following the demand for a separate Telangana state.

Minister of State for Home Gurudas Kamat said the Central government set up the Committee for Consultations on the Situation in Andhra Pradesh (CCSAP) headed by Justice (retd) B N Srikrishna on Feb 3, 2010.

"The total expenditure incurred on the CCSAP upto Mar 4, 2011 is 20,15,86,242," he told Lok Sabha today.

Kamat said, "Union Home Minister P Chidambaram conevened a meeting with recognised political parties in Andhra Pradesh on on Jan 6, 2011 where a copy of the report of the CCSAP was given to the representatives with the request to consider the report so as to firm up their views thereon."

"Creation of new states involves complex issues and requires consultations and consensus and therefore, no definite time-frame can be specified in this regard," he said.

PTI