Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy will visit New Delhi on Monday to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Several issues, including State finances, are expected to come up for discussion with Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah.
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy last met the Prime Minister in October 2020.
According to information, Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy will explain the State’s precarious financial position and seek liberal financial assistance from the Centre to bail out the State from the crisis.
The government has to mobilise resources for continuing the implementation of a plethora of welfare schemes. Additional financial commitments, including the pay revision for government employees, are posing a challenge to the State Government, sources say.
The other key subjects likely to come up for discussion include continuation of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council, privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) and permission to dovetail PM-KISAN with the State’s Rythu Bharosa scheme. Other issues like funds for the Polavaram multipurpose project, release of pending grants from the Centre and grant of special category status to the State form part of the CM’s agenda.
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy is expected to request the Prime Minister to complete the necessary formalities to retain the Council. The State Assembly passed a resolution in November 2021 withdrawing its previous statutory resolution seeking abolition of the Legislative Council, after the ruling YSRCP secured a full majority in the 58-member House.
Central aid
The State government has to bear the entire expenditure under the Rythu Bharosa if it were to be delinked with the Centre’s PM-KISAN scheme. The State has been paying ₹13,500, including ₹6,000 under PM-KISAN, to each farmer per annum, naming the scheme as YSR Rythu Bharosa. The government wants the Centre to allow Andhra Pradesh to continue the existing format.
In March 2021, the CM wrote a letter to the Prime Minister seeking the latter’s appointment to discuss various options to revive the VSP. Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy even said that he would lead a delegation of all-party leaders and representatives of trade unions to the Prime Minister. But, it did not materialise for various reasons.
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