YSRCP accuses Chandrababu Naidu government of favouring aqua feed companies and weakening APSADA

The YSRCP accused Andhra Pradesh’s TDP-led coalition government of favouring aqua feed companies and weakening APSADA. Party leaders also questioned subsidy policies and alleged that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu was using the Vivekananda Reddy murder case for political advantage.

Tadepalli: The YSR Congress Party on Friday accused the NDA government in Andhra Pradesh led by TDP National President and Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, of pushing the aqua sector into crisis and working in tandem with aqua feed companies at the cost of poor farmers.

Speaking to the media here on Friday, Party Coordinator Vaddi Raghuram said, the coalition government is trying to weaken the Andhra Pradesh State Aquaculture Development Authority (APSADA) Act and is working to favour feed company owners leaving aqua farmers in the lurch. He also alleged that the Chandrababu Naidu government has been misleading courts.

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He said they would take up the issue to the next level and see that aqua farmers get their due benefits. He claimed that Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had brought the APSADA to safeguard the interests of aqua farmers.

“The coalition on the other hand has issued a GO and misled the courts by stating that it has roped in three aqua farmers as members and is going forward to weaken the APSADA,” he said demanded that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu make it clear as to when was the meeting held with aqua farmers and where and who are the three handpicked aqua farmers in the committee. “The coalition is favouring a few companies”, he alleged.

Raghuram said the aqua feed prices were hike by Rs 27 in the past six months and the coalition government is boasting of subsidy which is just Rs 1.50 and there is no reply as to why the power subsidy was withdrawn to farmers in June and July. Tenant farmers are bearing the brunt due to the policies of the coalition government and the crop holiday affects them most, he said.

He claimed that when Jagan Mohan Reddy was the Chief Minister, aqua sector was given a subsidy of Rs 3.60 crore.

Earlier, at a separate press conference, YSRCP leader and former minister Sake Sailajanath accused Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu of using the Vivekananda Reddy murder case for political purposes and attempting to prolong it.

He alleged that people accused in the case were appearing at TDP offices, addressing the media and meeting the Chief Minister. He also questioned the political significance of the petitioners in the case receiving appointments with Chandrababu Naidu.

“Despite the observations of the Supreme Court, Chandrababu Naidu is trying to keep the case alive for political advantage. His actions raise questions about whether he is acting in coordination with the accused and the petitioners,” Sailajanath said.

He alleged that Chandrababu Naidu was using both the liquor case and the Vivekananda Reddy murder case to target YSRCP and gain political mileage.

“People can see through these tactics. His manipulative and opportunistic politics are once again on display,” he said.