Centre invites TS, AP to sort out bifurcation issues

Hyderabad: The Centre has convened a meeting of top officials of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on November 23 to discuss the unresolved issues between the two states as per the Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked chief secretaries of both the Telugu states to attend the meeting to be held in Delhi. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla will preside over the meeting which will discuss the pending issues after bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. The meeting is seen as another fresh attempt by the Centre to address the pending issues. Under the Reorganisation Act, all post-bifurcation issues must be sorted out in 10 years. The previous meeting between the two states was held on September 27 but it was inconclusive. As many as 14 pending issues were discussed. Of them, seven were related to the inter-state issues between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The remaining issues include financial assistance to the AP capital city, grants to the backward regions development and other assurances given under the Reorganization Act. The Union Secretary directed the Home Ministry to examine all the court cases regarding sharing of assets in consultation with the Law department. The Centre's notice to the Telangana Government to pay the power dues of nearly Rs 6,000 crore to Andhra Pradesh which was strongly objected by the TS government would be raised again. It will also demand that AP pay Rs 12,900 crore which the AP Power utilities owed to Telangana.

Officials said that the promise of establishment of Bayyaram Steel Plant, Railway Coach Factory in Kazipet and Tribal University were still pending before the Centre. Telangana officials expressed their unhappiness over Andhra Pradesh approaching courts on the bifurcation issues, creating legal complications and blocking the division of these institutions. They demanded that the Centre take steps to make Andhra Pradesh withdraw the cases and sort out issues through talks.