Direct flight from Vizag to Thailand to strengthen trade ties with Japan, Hong Kong

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 30, 2013: Vizagites are hopeful that introduction of direct flight from the city to Bangkok would not only improve tourism and business with Thailand but also, open up trade and strengthen ties with Japan and Hong Kong.  After Dubai and Singapore Vizag is expected to be connected with another international destination, Thailand, very soon.

The high commissioner of Thailand Pisan Manawat along with his team and also the top decision makers of Thai Smile airways will be visited Vizag on Friday. The delegation will be in the city on Saturday also.

The team will conduct feasibility test to introduce direct flight to Thailand. Though the team was supposed to visit Vizag in July, it was postponed due to panchayat polls and various other reasons.

During the interactions by the representatives of Vizag Development Council (VDC) with about 20 leading travel agents operating in the region it was found that there is demand for everyday flight to Thailand on all 7 days of the week based on the business they are doing. 

Currently people from this region are going from Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata to Bangkok and other cities in Thailand. Distance from Hyderabad to Bangkok is 2400 km, from Chennai it is 2254 km, whereas from Vizag to Bangkok the distance is only 1905 km, which will save lot of time and money to the travelers in this region.

At present Pharma exporters and traders in and around Vizag are sending goods via Hyderabad or Singapore.  While Vizag to Hyderabad is 500 km and Hyderabad to Japan is 6180 km, which is a total of 6680 km.  Vizag to Singapore is 2888 km and Singapore to Japan is 5208 km, which is a total of 8096 km. Where as, Vizag to Bangkok is 1905 km and Bangkok to Japan is 4507 km, which is a total of 6412 km.

“With this we are very much pleased to convey that Pharma exporters and traders will benefit a lot due to this nearest option of connectivity. On the other hand traders and travelers of Hong Kong travel to either Hyderabad or Singapore for Hong Kong connectivity.  Vizag to Hyderabad is 500 km and Hyderabad to Hong Kong is 3729 km, which is a total of 4229 km. Vizag to Singapore is 2888 km and Singapore to Hong Kong is 1422 km, which is a total of 4310 km. Where as Vizag to Bangkok is 1905 km and Bangkok to Hong Kong is 1704 km, which is a Total of 3609. Vizag- Hongkong will be only 3609 km if Vizag and Thailand are connected directly via Air,” said VDC, vice president, O Naresh Kumar.

VDC representatives are also in discussions with Air Arabia and Sri Lankan Airways to introduce their flight services to Vizag. However 24/7 operations of the airport on only three days a week by the Eastern Naval Command (ENC) had dampened the spirits.  

“We also request the Navy to immediately open the Airport 24/7 on all days as there are many new players coming in and even domestic players  are wanting to operate late night. Indigo has already given written request to the Airport director and permission is awaited. We need to be ready and open. We expect more trade and exports from Vizag once airport is open 24 hrs all days and cargo terminal is operational.
Airport director informed us that work is in full progress and we can expect good news on dedicated cargo handling soon, positively this yearend,” said VDC president, P Vishnukumar Raju. 

Capital race: Report on land submitted to CCLA

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 29, 2013: Even as the protests for Samaikyandhra is gaining momentum, across the 13 districts of Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra, local district officials have prepared a detailed report on the availability of land in the district as sought by the CCLA to set up a new capital for divided Andhra Pradesh.

The local officials have recently sent the report to the CCLA in Hyderabad. As per the sources in the revenue department, huge chunks of land were identified near Anadapuram and also the land covered under Peddapalli reserve forest area. The Peddapalli reserve forest area comes under the revenue divisions of Narsiptanam and Anakapalli, which was recently formed. 

The revenue staff identified around 13,000 acres of vacant land covered under this Peddapalli reserve forest area coming under Makavarapalem, Kotavuratla, S Rayavaram mandals in Narsipatnam revenue division, Yelamanchali and Kasimkota mandals in Anakapalli revenue division.

Besides, another 5,000 acres were also identified between Rambilli and Achyuthapuram mandals which were acquired for the SEZ and left unused or unutilized. Experts are of the opinion that 18,000 acres at one place and also nearer to national highway would be the ideal location for Vizag to be pitched as capital for Seemandhra.

The district administration had already sent the site plans, maps, survey numbers, boundaries and all the other details on the land available in the report. The four revenue divisional officers in the district have asked all the 43 tehsildhars to conduct a survey in their respective areas and file reports. Those who have gone on leave were also asked to immediately join the duties and they have compiled the data. It is worth mentioning here that Vijayawada, Guntur, Ongole and Tirupati are also in the capital race. 

“As per the instructions of our higher ups and CCLA we have submitted the report recently. We have to see what the government would be deciding on the capital and are waiting for the further instructions,” said an RDO.

Stir for Samaikyandhra: Exchequer suffers revenue loss in Vizag

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 28, 2013 : As the total work strike by the government staff, across all the departments, entered day 16, the State’s exchequer suffered the worst ever revenue loss in the recent times.

Around 23,000 government staff, both in urban and rural limits, in the district, began their total work strike from Aug 13 protesting UPA and Congress’s decision to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh to carve out Telangana.

Most of the government offices are welcomed with locked doors these days. Staff from around 73 departments, are taking part in the strike. These departments include, Zilla Prishad, Panchayat Raj, Irrigation, revenue, medical and health, commercial taxes, civic bodies, road transport, stamps and registrations.

The revenue loss is estimated to be more than Rs 50 crs for 15 days. Work at the 19 sub registrar offices coming under stamps and registrations department came to a grinding halt. The stamps and registration department is one of the highest revenue earning arms of the district administration. 

There were no registrations of the lands done at these offices. No stamp duty is being collected. Around more than 2,500 applications for encumbrance certificates and other queries are pending at these offices across the district. It is estimated that around Rs 20 cr worth stamp duty payments came to a halt. “On an average stamps and registration department earns about Rs 45 cr to Rs 50 cr. And at present not even a single staff member is present at any office pushing the loss,” said a senior official of the stamps and registration department.

Collection of road tax, new vehicle registrations, vehicle checks, inspections and other receipts, were stalled due to the shortage of staff at the road transport department. The estimated loss to the road transport authority is put at around Rs 10 cr in these 15 days.

For RTC, since 15 days around 5,100 staff was on warpath and all the 1,063 buses in the district were off roads. RTC suffered around Rs 10 crs since 15 days in the district. Though the online payments and other works had saved the commercial taxes department from facing huge losses due to the work strike, the department is not in a position to conduct surprise checks and crackdown on the illegal transportation of the goods due to the same reason of shortage of staff.

Commercial taxes department generally earns a revenue of Rs 50 lakhs per month through these surprise checks which is on an average it earns Rs 1.5 lakh in a day. Until now the department is said to have suffered loss of more than Rs 20 lakhs for the last 15 days.

Collection of property tax, vacant land tax, approval of building plans and other services took to a beating. GVMC was losing around Rs 80 lakhs to Rs 1.5 cr per day, which amounts to Rs 20 cr since 15 days. 

Trifurcation of AP is the only solution, says Deo

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 24, 2013 :  In an interesting development Araku MP and union tribal affairs and panchayat raj minister, V Kishore Chandra Deo opined that only solution in the present charged situation prevailing in Andhra Pradesh after the Congress Working Committee (CWC)’s Telangana declaration is to trifurcate the state, grant a separate statehood for Rayalseema. 

In a letter to the AK Anthony committee and the Congress vice president, Rahul Gandhi, written recently, Deo said trifurcation will assuage the feelings of all three regions and is the only permanent solution. He also batted for Vizag as the capital for Andhra region after the trifurcation.

“Andhra Pradesh at present has three distinctive regions which are geographically and culturally divided between the Telengana, Rayalseema and Andhra regions.  I am of the firm opinion that none of these three regions should be sub-divided.  It has to be ensured that the demands and tensions arising from such situations do not lead to escalated violence and bloodbaths.  Such situations can be avoided only by taking cognizance of the prevailing realities,” he said and added that only solution in the present situation is to trifurcate the state and grant a separate statehood for Rayalseema which will assuage the feelings of all three regions and is the only permanent solution.

He also observed that Telengana region has 17 Lok Sabha seats and of the remaining 25 seats, 17 Lok Sabha seats are located in Andhra region and 8 Lok Sabha seats in Rayalseema.   Such a division will bring the parity in the number of parliament seats that are there in the Telengana and Andhra region.  

Rayalseema with 8 Lok Sabha seats will be a larger state than Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Tripura, Sikkim, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Pondicherry and Goa, he added.

“As far as the Andhra region is concerned, Vishakhapatnam is the most ideal and suitable location for the capital.  Geopolitically and strategically located at the centre of our country’s east coast.  It is the second city of Andhra Pradesh and already has an inbuilt infrastructure apart from the international airport, the natural harbor and various other facilities which have been developed over the years.  Land is available around Vishakhapatnam and can be acquired for the purpose of building a new capital,” Deo added. 

 He further said that announcement on trifurcation of the state be made early.  He also took objections to the alleged behaviour of chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and PCC Chief, Botsa Satynarayana stating that it was unfair and mischievous that both were openly and publicly accusing the MPs and the union ministers from Seemandhra in order to cover up their selfish and ulterior motives.  

“Most unfortunate are allegations and the public perception that both these leaders are sponsoring and encouraging violent agitations with a feeling of injured guilt.  They are stoking the embers of discontent and engineering assaults on the elected representatives of people. The feeling among the people is, however, that one of them was keen that the State be divided as he hoped that such a decision will enable him to achieve his life’s ambition of becoming Chief Minister of a divided State.  While the other believed that his position would be secured till 2014 only by prolonging the Telengana impasse. People strongly feel that it is these selfish interests of both the heads of the government and the party in the State respectively, that have led us to this piquant situation,” the union minister said. 

HPCL fire toll rises to 8

By SNV Sudhir



Visakhapatnam, Aug 24, 2013: The death toll in the HPCL-Visakh Refinery fire rose to eight on Saturday. Sources also said that five to six workers were still missing and it was being suspected that they might have been buried under the debris of the 50-ft wooden cooling tower, which had collapsed on Friday evening following the explosion.

While HPCL employee Chada Murali died on the spot, contract workers A. Apparao, A.
Srinivasa Rao and Manojeet Pradhan, who were private employees working on the renovation and expansion of the cooling tower, succumbed to their injuries in the hospitals where they were undergoing treatment.

The bodies of two other workers were found at the accident site on Saturday morning and their identities are yet to be established. Even as the Union minister of state for petroleum and natural gas, Ms Panabaka Lakshmi, said that an inquiry was ordered into the blast at state-owned HPCL refinery in Malkapuram on Friday evening and that action would be taken against those responsible for the mishap, fingers are being pointed at the quality of wooden cooling tower that started operations in 2009.

Preliminary inquiry revealed that the excess inflow of hydrocarbons in one of the multiple tubes leaked into the seawater coolant, while welding work for expansion and modernisation of the cooling tower was underway which led to the explosion.

The expansion and modernisation was taken up as HPCL was about to start production of fuels as per Euro IV standards. HPCL has two cooling towers. While one tower came into operation in the 90s, the second one started working in 2009. The latter collapsed on Friday.

The same tower partially collapsed a few months back. “A part of the cooling tower was

dislodged a few months back and the present works are also part of the modernisation of certain parts,” said HPCL-Visakh refinery, executive director, V.V.R. Narasimham.

When asked why HPCL was depending on private contractors and outsourcing, Mr Narasimham said that HPCL can’t take up civil works and they would have to entrust the job to private contractors.

However, he added that there are regular quality assessments done by their employees. The works on the cooling tower are being executed by five different private firms.

Fortunately, the blast took place 1 km away from the pipeline and oil storage tanks; otherwise the blast impact would have been more.

Vizag industries flout safety norms

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 25, 2013: A string of industrial accidents in this region has raised serious concerns over the safety of those working in the units and also those living in the vicinity. Vizag district alone has 1.18 lakh people working in 1,095 industries.

And around 108 industries are susceptible for accidents. As many as 91 accidents were reported in 69 factories between 2010 and 2012.  Around 28 persons died and more than 30 were injured severely and still undergoing treatment, in various industrial accidents that took place in Vizag and Srikakulam since last May itself.  These incidents reflect the lack of safety measures at the industries.

Vizag was also identified as a critically polluted area by the Central Pollution Control Board and a moratorium was mooted on greenfield and brownfield projects as the city is located in a ‘bowl’ and there is no escape route in the event of a major disaster. Industries are located on the outskirts of Vizag within a 70-km radius. 

Teams deployed to audit safety norms of the industries in June after the fire at HPCL, had inspected around 90 industrial units. After the audit the local office of the directorate of factories had issued notices to more than 60 percent of the units. 

Closure notices were issued to 12 industries to shut them immediately for failing to maintain safety standards or install safety mechanism even after serving notices recently. The directorate of factories also issued two more closure  notices last week.

This throws light on how industries in Vizag are running all these years without proper safety standards.  Around four teams were deployed to audit safety norms in the industries. The teams comprised deputy commissioner of factories, officials from the pollution control board and revenue department as members.

However, a thorough study on the causes of accidents, lacunae in safety measures as ordered by the ports and infrastructure minister, Ganta Srinivasa Rao was never taken up. “Often officers visiting factories fro inspections are pressurized which hinders the inspection finally results in compromise of safety standards. Officers should be allowed to do their job  without any pressures from any quarter,”   Visakhapatnam Steel Plant’s recognised trade union, general secretary and AITUC national council member and D Adinarayana told this correspondent.

Former senior bureaucrat and Forum for Better Visakha (FBV), convenor, EA Sarma felt that the concerned persons must be prosecuted under the relevant sections of IPC. “The units which have defied all safety and environmental norms should be permanently closed down. Proceed against the concerned senior officers of both directorate  factories and APPCB for dereliction of duty in enforcing the safety and the environment norms in the case of these units. They have been in nexus with the errant units,” he added.

On the other hand the local office of the directorate of factories that is responsible for ensuring industrial safety is short-staffed. There are only two inspectors of factories for the four circles in the three north Andhra districts.

They are supposed to inspect all medium and large-scale industries once a year, and factories working with hazardous materials twice a year.  Vizag’s Circle II inspector was given additional charge of Circle I (Urban) which has mostly public sector units (PSUs). The Srikakulam district inspector of factories was given additional charge of Vizianagaram.

The inspectors are also given meagre facilities. For example, they are not allowed to travel in four-wheelers, and they have to depend on their own two-wheelers. The Vizag circle office doesn’t even have sufficient sub-staff like a clerk or even an attender.

Major HPCL blaze kills 3

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 23, 2013: Just months after an explosion created havoc at the refinery of state-owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), 18 km from the city in Malkapuram, a major fire broke out on Friday killing three workers and injuring around 37 others.

Two of the dead have been identified as Ch. Murali and Manojit Vardhan. Among the injured, five were in critical condition and the death toll was likely to go up, said sources. The injured were rushed to the Indian Navy hospital INH Kalyani and to private hospitals in the city. Among the injured, five were in critical condition and the death toll was likely to go up, said sources. The injured were rushed to the Indian Navy hospital INH Kalyani and to private hospitals in the city.

According to official sources, the accident occurred while commissioning a wooden cooling tower at a Diesel Hydro Desulphurisation Unit being built at the refinery.

The workers were involved in welding and other works relating to erecting the tower when the fire broke out and the tower collapsed.The cause of the fire is still not known.

After an explosion created havoc at the refinery of state-owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) here, residents of Malkapuram and Sreeharipuram panicked after seeing the huge column of smoke. Many ran out of their houses fearing that the fire might spread.

Fire tenders from nearby industrial units were pressed into service to bring the flames under control. Saltwater and foam were also used to douse the flames and after two hours, the fire was finally put out.

“The exact cause of the fire is not known yet. First the injured need to be rushed to the hospital for treatment,” said city police commissioner B. Shivadhar Reddy.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy asked officials to submit a detailed report regarding the incident at the earliest. He expressed deep anguish over the incident and directed the incharge collector and city police commissioner to rush to the spot and take up rescue operations and provide all medical assistance to the injured in coordination with the HPCL management.

On the night of May 16, there had been an explosion at the Crude Oil Distillery Unit 3 (CDU3), due to a spark that had ignited the fuel at the same refinery. Fortunately there had been no casualties at that time.

Navy helps douse fire Personnel from the Eastern Naval Command under the guidance of their firefighting officer rendered necessary firefighting assistance at the site. Three fire tenders and about 35 personnel from the Navy operated with the local teams to ensure that the flames were doused speedily. 

Bauxite mining : Pressure mounts on govt to form gram sabhas

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 22, 2013 :  Pressure is mounting on the state government to form gram sabhas as per the provisions of the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act of 1996 in Vizag Agency in the wake of 12 grama sabhas in Niyamgiri hills in the neihbouring Odisha passing resolutions opposing proposed bauxite mining by Vedanta.

A similar proposal to mine bauxite was mooted in four Agency mandals in Vizag district by the state owned APMDC which had come under bitter criticism and stiff opposition by the local tribals citing environmental and livelihood concerns.  They are of the opinion that with the grama sabhas, they will be empowered to stop mining.

The grama sabha in a tribal village assumed significance with an Apex court’s order in April on the proposed bauxite mining in Niyamgiri hills in Odisha. The Supreme Court in its order on the case filed by Odisha Mineral Development Corporation (OMDC) directed the Odisha government to place the issue of proposal before gram sabha and it would take a decision within three months. Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) should take a final decision on the grant of stage II clearance for the bauxite mining project in the light of the decisions of the gram sabha within two months thereafter.

And recently as per the Supreme Court’s order grama sabas were convened in Kalahandi and Rayagada districts. All these grama sabhas resolved opposing mining.

“State government should immediately form grama sabhas as per the provisions of the PESA Act and also take opinion from them in Vizag Agency on the proposed bauxite mining. Grama sabhas resolution in Niyamagiri hills had definitely gave a fresh lease and confidence to the ribals here who have been opposing mining tooth and nail since more than a decade,” said CPI district secretary, JV Satyanrayana Murthy, whose party is actively campaigning against mining in Vizag Agency.  

Ironically, it’s more than two years that the state government issued a GO enacting the provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) (PESA) Act, 1996 of the union government empowering the Gram Sabhas in Scheduled Areas.

The PESA was enacted to empower grama sabhas to safeguard and preserve the traditions and customs of the people, their cultural identity, community resources and customary modes of dispute resolution and ownership of Minor Forest Produce (MFP).

The G O MS No 66 of panchayat raj and rural development department issued on March 24, 2011 also talks about declaration of tribal villages under PESA Act in various Agency tracts and also formation of grama sabhas in those villages.

However not even a single village in the Agency tracts coming under Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Khammam, Warangal, Adilabad and Mahabubnagar districts were declared as scheduled area or PESA villages.

No grama sabha was formed.  Every village declared under PESA shall have a Gram

Sabha comprising of adult members, whose names are included in the electoral rolls at the village level. The Sarpanch of the Gram Panchayat shall be the President of the Gram Sabha. The Gram Sabha shall elect a Vice President and Secretary.

With the supreme court’s order on grama sabhas the state owned APMDC is also clearly in a fix over the contentious bauxite mining issue.   The state owned APMDC which had, until now, been given licenses by the state government with the rider that it would have to get clearances from MoEF to mine bauxite in Vizag Agency, had on many occasions argued that since bauxite comes under major minerals category, there was no need to take local grama sabha’s consent to go ahead with the mining as per PSEA Act.   

The state government  in a letter to the union tribal welfare ministry on Feb 7  responding to union minister V Kishore Chandra Deo’s directives to the state government to cancel the licenses, had also laid emphasis on the same argument of no necessity to take consent from grama sabha to mine bauxite, which is a major mineral.

After wide spread opposition from local tribals on the proposed bauxite mining , without going ahead with according stage II clearances, MoEF appointed a four member expert committee headed by Former Director General of Forests and Secretary to Union government, JC Kala to study the issue.  The JC Kala committee too recommended that grama sabha consent should be taken before going ahead with the mining. 

MSP to check monopoly & Left Wing Extremism

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 20, 2013: In a bid to tackle the left wing extremism in tribal tracts like Vizag Agency, the union cabinet had recently approved a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for marketing the non-nationalized Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and development of a value chain, through Minimum Support Price (MSP).

This will be a measure towards social safety for MFP gatherers, who are primarily members of the Scheduled Tribes (STs) most of them in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) areas. The new scheme will also check the monopoly of state agencies like Girijan Cooperative Corporation (GCC) in Andhra Pradesh. Under the new scheme, GCC should also pay the rate fixed by the union government to the tribals, without exploiting them. Until now the GCC fixes the rate and buys various forest produce like tamarind and gums.

The scheme would cover 12 MFPs, which are not nationalized in states having Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in accordance with Fifth Schedule of Constitution. These are Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Jharkhand. The 12 MFPs are Tendu, Bamboo, Karanj, Mahuwa Seed, Sal Leaf, Sal Seed, Lac, Chironjee, Wild Honey, Myrobalan, Tamarind, and Gums (Gum Karaya). 

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs will be the nodal ministry for implementation and monitoring of the scheme. The Minimum Support Price would be determined by the Ministry with technical help of TRIFED.

The price of MFP is most often determined by the trader than by demand and supply  Most of the MFP rich states are affected by left wing extremism making it easier for unscrupulous traders to operate freely in the market and the state is many a time unable to play effective role.

Of the total 25 MFPs dealt by the GCC in Vizag Agency, around 4 including tamarind come under new MSP scheme going to be launched by the union government. GCC’s annual turnover is Rs 25 cr and 40 percent of it comes from these 4 MFPs. “This new scheme would not only benefit the tribals but also the state agencies like GCC.  The proposal also provides for sharing of losses, if any, by the centre and the states in 75:25 ratio,” said GCC general manager, Ashok Kumar.

The Tribal rights activist, Ganjivarapu Srinivas is also hopeful that the scheme would help the tribes from being exploited by private traders and also the GCC.

Water wars to stay unresolved in Vizag

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 18, 2013: Irrigation experts and locals are of the opinion that bifurcating the state without resolving water disputes with Odisha will spell doom for the irrigation sector in the three districts of north Andhra.

According to them, successive governments have failed to settle the disputes since decades, and division of the state without resolving these issues will only aggravate the problems of north Andhra, which is already lagging behind in development in all sectors.

There are only two rivers with surplus waters, Nagavali and Vamsadhara, while 14 other rivers have deficit yields. All these rivers originate in Odisha and flow into north Andhra region but  North Andhra has been unable to utilize the waters of Vamsadhara and Nagavali, because of very minute problems with Odissha which remain unresolved since Independence.

Odisha government proposes to build a dam on Vamsadhara at Phanidongara, to link Nagavali and Rushikulya rivers, increase the height of dam on river Bahuda at Bagalutti and construct a new project on Mahendratanaya river, which will reduce north Andhra to a desert.

“When the state government failed to resolve the disputes despite good strength of MPs how can we expect them to be resolved with a few MPs after the division?” asked Uttarandhra Rakshana Vedika (URV), president, S.S. Shivasankar.

The only solution to the water problem of the region is construction of Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanthi and Polavaram project. The Polavaram left canal will cater to the needs of Visakhapatnam district farmers. About 1.43lakh acres ayacut will be irrigated and Vizag city drinking water problem will be solved with Polavaram. With the Uttarandhra Sujala Sravathi, around 8lakh acres of ayacut in the three districts will  be  irrigated.

Retired chief engineer (Irrigation), S. Satyanarayana of Uttarandhra Rakshana Vedika said that neglect of  irrigation projects has resulted in  migrations. The URV representatives said that north Andhra has been neglected ever since the formation of Odisha in 1936.

Capital race hots up, Report sought on land availability in Vizag

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 12, 2013:Taking the suspense on the capital to Seemandhra after the state bifurcation, to the next level, the union government, through the state revenue department, has sought details on the availability of government revenue and forest land measuring 20,000 acres in Vizag. The Centre is said to be planning to take a final call on the new capital to build a state Assembly, Secretariat, High Court and other major infrastructure including better road connectivity and water resources. Wednesday has been set as deadline to submit the report.

The four revenue divisional officers in the district have asked all the 43 tehsildhars in the district to conduct a survey in their respective areas and file reports. Those who have gone on leave were also asked to immediately join the duties to compile the data.

They are also collecting details about land acquired by various government agencies like APIIC for setting up industries in the district. For instance RINL had recently earmarked nearly 1,800 acres of land to Gangavaram Port Ltd for the setting up of  a private port. If forest land is utilised, alternative land will have to be given to the forest department elsewhere. Revenue staff is also  identifying alternative land.

However total work strike called by the AP NGOs may put a spanner in compiling the huge data. “All our staff is busy compiling  the data sought by the Centre. They want 20,000 acres at one place, and are considering Vizag as a possible option for a new capital for Seemandhra. We have identified land at one place in Anandapuram and K. Kotapadu,” an RDO told this correspondent.

Vijayawada, Guntur, Ongole and Tirupati are also in the race. With an annual GDP of 26 billion dollars, two major ports, steel plant and international airport Vizag is fully in the race besides with self sustainability, good growth index, secure location, healthy contribution to GDP, connectivity, enhanced security and cosmopolitan culture.

PSUs to face heat of stir

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 11, 2013: In a bid to grab the attention of the Union government to the cause of Samaikyandhra, those agitating against bifurcation of the state have decided to target public sector undertakings and central government offices in Visakhapatnam.

There are more than half a dozen PSUs in Vizag including Navaratna steel maker Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), Vizag Port, Hindustan Shipyard, BHPV and also the airport.

They have decided to stall the production in VSP for two days as it would be a loss to send a strong message to the Centre.

“There will be no use staging rasta rokos and rallies. There will be an immediate knee jerk reaction from the Centre if the PSUs are targeted. We will consult all the workers trade unions of the PSUs in and around Vizag and chalk out an action plan so that they too join our fold,” said a Samaikyandhra JAC member under condition of anonymity.

However, the Samaikyandhra activ-ists refused to divulge the schedule they are planning for these PSUs. They have decided to hold gate meetings initially at all the PSUs as a run up to the indefinite work strike.

“There will be definite reaction from the Centre if the production at VSP stops for just two days and if the import and export activity ceases for a few days at the Vizag port. And what if the passengers are not allowed to go into the airport? Most of the workers unions in the PSUs have lent their support to the cause.”

No central government office or bank will be allowed to function from Tuesday onwards when the AP NGOs begin their strike. 

Seemandhra heat: Kruparani asks babus to speed up ITIR sanction process in Vizag

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 7, 2013: At a time when protests for Samaikyandhra had reached its peaks and union ministers from Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra Pradesh are facing the wrath of the agitators for Hyderabad centred development. The ministers now seem to have shifted their focus on development of the regions probably to placate the forces of Samaikyandhra.

In one such development, Union minister of state for IT and communications, Killi Kruparani who represents neighbouring Srikakulam loksabha constituency and was busy meeting Congress bosses all these days on the Telanagana declaration had on Wednesday held a high level review meeting with the Department of Electronics & Information Technology (DeitY)  officials to discuss the IT Investment Region (ITIR) proposed in Vizag.

Killi Kruparani, held a meeting with the secretary and senior officers of the DeitY at Electronics Niketan in New Delhi.

Inadequate infrastructure has been identified as one of the constraining factors being faced by the IT industry and in order to address the same, the DeitY has notified the policy for setting up of ITIRs in the country.  ITIR would be endowed with excellent infrastructure and would reap the benefits of costing, networking and greater efficiency through use of common infrastructure and support services. Under this, Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Industrial Parks, Free Trade Zones, Warehousing Zones and Export-oriented Units will come up. ITIR will attract more investment in the IT and ITeS sectors and will provide more direct employment to the people.  The exports in IT sector will also increase. 

After Hyderabad from a humble beginning where software exports registered only Rs 15 crore in 2003-04 Vizag’s IT companies has crossed Rs 1,000 cr mark and done a business of Rs 1,200 cr in 2011-12 fiscal. Besides, major players like IBM, HSBC, and Mahindra Satyam there are around 100 small, medium and big IT, ITEs companies operating in two IT SEZs in Rushikonda and in VSEZ.

As per the policy, in each state one ITIR is being sanctioned. Accordingly, an ITIR for Hyderabad has already been approved.  As several small and medium IT companies and the IT exports in and around Visakhapatnam are increasingly coming up every year, the minister felt the need for setting up of ITIR in Visakhapatnam and has been consistently pursuing the matter. The same has been agreed in principle.

During the meeting, Kruparani directed the officers of the department to speed up the process of sanctioning of ITIR for Visakhapatnam. She believes that setting up of ITIR in Visakhapatnam will be beneficial for the IT & ITeS companies in the region and in turn will attract more investments in the sectors, increase in IT exports and create more direct, indirect employment to the people of this region. 

REEL TO REAL: JAC to ban Chiru family films

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 6, 2013: Movies starring Union tourism minister Chiranjeevi’s family members are set to face the heat of the Samaikyandhra stir. In an attempt to intensify the agitation demanding that UPA reverse the Telangana decision, Samaikyandhra Students’ JAC on Tuesday unleashed an action plan.

They decided to boycott the films of Chiru’s son Ram Charan Teja and his brother Pawan Kalyan.

Their films, Yevadu and Attarintiki Daredhi respectively, are lined up for release in the second week of August.

The JAC said the boycott was to protest against Chiranjeevi for not using all his efforts

to convince his party leadership to reverse their T decision. They claimed Chiranjeevi had failed miserably to project the emotions and sentiments of the public of Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra to the Congress central leader ship.

“How can he stay silent when Seemandhra is burning? He failed to express our sentiments. He must quit. We are boycotting the films of his family members.

We dare exhibitors and distributors to screen their movies. We won't hesitate to attack theatres if they screen the movies,” said Lagudu Govind of Samaikyandhra Students' JAC.

The latter on Tuesday morning held an emergency meeting on the varsity campus and decided to intensify their agitation.

From Wednesday they will launch a door-todoor campaign to explain to the public the importance of the stir and the need to maintain the status quo of the state. JAC has planned a public meeting at AU engineering college grounds on Aug 12.

They have planned a march on the beach road on August 18 along the lines of Telangana Million March in Hyderabad.

Realty Bites: Vizag yet to witness realty boom after T announcement

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 5, 2013:  The real estate sector may be heading for a boom in cities like Vijayawada and Ongole soon after the UPA’s decision to bifurcate state to create Telangana, but this port city is unaffected by that sudden expansion. Local realtors and apartment builders have also decided to handle the situation cautiously.   

“The property business had indeed been on upswing until recently, tanks to the reports relating to the state’s bifurcation but it has now reached a saturation point. Even if we are ready to increase property prices nobody is ready to buy. There used to be some buyers who would want to buy properties for investment they too not evincing much interest due to the drop of rupee value against dollar,” said Andhra Pradesh Real Estate Developmen Association (APREDA) treasurer, Nagesh Kumar.

Builders are also not ready to increase the real estate prices until the issue of the capital of Seemandhra is resolved. Property prices had witnessed a sharp rise in manifold in Pendurthy zone, Dakamarri zone, Anandapuram, Yendada, Madhurawada, Thagarapuvalasa, Bheemili, Kottavalasa till Viziangaram prior to 2009.

They feel the bubble may burst if the situation is not handled cautiously.  “Inquiries have definitely gone up after the Telangana decision from the prospective customers. But there is no any heavy or immediate rush. It’s only those who have already decided to own a plot or flat in Vizag are coming forward and buying from us. But there are no fresh transactions. It’s already more than a week since the decision was announced. We are thinking to increase prices at a very nominal rate from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 per sq yard or Sft. But nothing is decided. We may take this decision unanimously this month end after watching the market for few more days,” said Sivaji Talluri of newly formed Visakhapatnam Apartment Builder’s Association (VABA).

There are more than 300 apartment builders in the Vizag city alone and some thousands of ventures coming up in various parts.

“A Sft in a semi luxurious apartment in certain areas in the city costs around Rs 5,500 to Rs 6,000. Whereas you get a flat with Rs 500 per sft less than the Vizag price in Banglore with more star amenities. If someone wants to buy a flat as an investment he would go to Banglore rather Vizag, which is yet to develop as prices are almost same or less in the Garden City than Port City,” said PLK Murthy who runs an advertisement agency.    

Capital talk goes viral on social networkig sites, Vizagies pitch for capital

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, Aug 1, 2013 : Even as protests continued in Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions against the UPA government’s endorsement of the separate state of Telangana, social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are full of speculation about the new capital for Seemandhra when Hyderabad ceases to be the joint capital 10 years hence.

Residents of Visakhapatnam are pitching hard for their city to be made the capital of Seemandhra. Vijayawada, Guntur and Ongole are also in contention, but Vizag’s residents want local leaders to bring pressure on the Union government to choose the port city.

“Guys I think we should pitch in for separate Uttarandhra if Vizag is not made capital. After years of injustice we got an opportunity and now they say Ongole will be capital, which we all know is nonsense,” writes Surya on the page and group “Vizag capital for Seemandhra” created on Facebook.

Within a couple of hours of the group being created more than 600 users joined it.

“Years of injustice due to the development of Hyderabad, directly or indirectly, affected and hampered Vizag’s development. High time we make our politicians speak about our rights. 26 billion dollars in a year GDP, two major ports, steel plant, international airport, what else do you need?? Vizag has got excellent infra compared to every other city. Ongole can never become capital. All the investment will be diverted. Let’s fight for Vizag to be capital. Otherwise we will lose golden opportunity to place Vizag on the global map,” wrote the group administrator.

Another member of the group, Tilak Marrapu, wrote, “A capital should have self sustainability, good growth index, secure location, healthy contribution to GDP, connectivity, enhanced security, cosmopolitan culture. Distance from different regions in the state and availability of government lands will be ranked only after the above stated parameters. I don’t know why the media discussions are not centred around these factors.” 

He added that local politicians must pitch for it. TSR, Purandeshwari, Kishore Chandra Deo, Kruparani, Sabbam Hari, Botsa Satyanarayana and Konthala are the key politicians who have some clout in the CWC that takes such decisions.