Nimmala demands 10,000 for white ration card holders

Mangalagiri: TDP Palakollu MLA Nimmala Ramanaidu on Tuesday strongly criticised Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy for not giving any special Covid package while all other chief ministers in the country were passing on many benefits to rescue their respective peoples from the pandemic.

Ramanaidu termed it as inhuman on the part of the YSRCP government to show Covid deaths as just 2,900 in May this year whereas the official records put the actual death toll at 85,000. Addressing a press conference here, he deplored that Kerala gave a package of Rs 20,000 crore, Tamil Nadu Rs. 4,153 crore, Karnataka Rs 1,250 crore and Maharashtra Rs 5,476 crore to poorer sections, small traders and others. However, Andhra Pradesh did not give a single rupee.

The TDP leader demanded the Jagan Reddy regime to wake up and immediately give a special package to the poor families who lost their incomes during the Coronavirus pandemic. The government should provide Rs 10,000 each to all the white ration cardholders. Also, Rs 10 lakh ex gratia should be paid to the families of the victims who died due to the infections. Had the government not cancelled Chandranna Bima, the poor families would have got this compensation automatically.

On June 16, the TDP protesters would submit their memorandums containing 10 demands to the tahsildars across the state. This would be followed by submission of memorandums at the RDO offices on June 18. Then, they will be submitted at the district collectors' offices on June 20 followed by protest 'Deekshas' in all the 175 Assembly constituencies on June 22.

Ramanaidu urged the ruling YSRCP not to cheat poor families by issuing empty GOs with regard to payment of Rs 15,000 for last rites to Covid victims. As the Centre has recognised journalists as frontline warriors, the AP Government should provide Rs. 50 lakh insurance cover to them. He stressed the need for reopening Anna canteens without any further delay.