Congress turning Telangana into ‘rehab centre’ for AP natives?

The appointment of retired IAS officer and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary, Adityanath Das as Advisor to the Telangana government (Irrigation and Water Resources) had triggered an uproar in the State.

Hyderabad: Is Telangana becoming a rehabilitation centre for officials and Congress party leaders from Andhra Pradesh? Considering some of the recent government and party appointments in the State, this could be quite true.

The appointment of Anila Vavilla as Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Telangana Renewable Energy Development Corporation Limited (TGREDCO) on Tuesday is the latest in the trend. There is a buzz on social media that she is a native of Ananthapuram, Andhra Pradesh. There are also reports that senior officials in the department are unhappy over her appointment as the VC&MD of TGREDCO.This is not an isolated case.

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The appointment of retired IAS officer and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary, Adityanath Das as Advisor to the Telangana government (Irrigation and Water Resources) had triggered an uproar in the State. Adityanath Das was heading the irrigation department in the undivided State and became the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh after bifurcation. He had also taken up many issues with the Krishna River Management Board (KRMB), which had a bearing on river water sharing from Telangana’s perspective.

Though, a central government institution, the appointment of retired IAS officer Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar as Director-General of Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) also sparked discussions among different sections. He had served as Special Chief Secretary to the Governor of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Post retirement, he worked as the State Election Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh.

On the party front too, the trend was seen when Yadavalli Venkat Swamy, a native of Andhra Pradesh, was appointed as the president of the Telangana wing of the National Students union of India (NSUI).

As opposition from within the party spilled out, student unions affiliated to the Congress demanded Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to cancel Swamy’s appointment and appoint a person from Telangana to the post. Venkat Swamy’s appointment orders as NSUI president were issued on August 13.

In February, BRS MLC K Kavitha had objected to appointment of a native of Andhra Pradesh in jobs meant for people of Telangana under compassionate appointment. A Raghunath Reddy, son of A Rami Reddy and a native of Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, was given a job in the Municipal Administration and Urban Development department under compassionate grounds using an old government order, she said and had demanded action in this regard.

In January, Central services officer Suryadevara Prasanna Kumar was appointed Advisor to the Telangana State Legislature Secretariat. His role was to assist Legislative Council Chairman G Sukhender Reddy and Speaker G Prasad Kumar in legislative matters. However in July, Prasanna Kumar Suryadevara was appointed Secretary General of the Andhra Pradesh Legislature.