All-Round Corruption In 104, 108 Services

Antakapalli, Srikakulam district: My Padayatra today passed through Regidi and Rajam mandals. Members of the differently-abled welfare association met me today on the occasion of the International Day for Persons with Disabilties. They made me cut a cake and shared their happiness with me. They also narrated their problems and the betrayal of promises by TDP government. As a protest against Chandrababu’s deception, the President of the Association had half his head, beard and moustache shaved. He said that Chandrababu Naidu had gone back on all the promises he made on the International Day for Persons with Disabilties and that he had forgotten long ago, the promises made in the election manifesto.

They told me that they carried Sai Baba, who had neither his lower limbs nor his hands, to Chandrababu Naidu and pleaded for his assistance. The chief minister sanctioned Rs.1 lakh, in response to their appeal. It has been nine months from that time and yet, not a single rupee has reached the disabled individual. They showed the pictures of their meeting with Chandrababu Naidu. They expressed their anguish that a chief minister goes back on his word for an amount as small as Rs.1 lakh and for a differently-abled person at that! This is the most unfortunate aspect of this TDP regime’s governance, they complained. In every district, employees of the 104 services have been meeting me.

Today, along with employees, doctors from 104 services met me. They told me that the concept of health services at the doorstep of the poor, had been diluted completely and had been reduced to a token service. Inferior medicines, purchased at higher prices, were being supplied under the 104 scheme, they lamented.

There were gross irregularities, they said, in the purchase of equipment. Compared to equipment in private hospitals which functions for years on end, equipment purchased at higher prices for 104 services is of no use after a couple of months, they pointed out. It pained me a lot to learn from the doctors that more harm than good was being done to public health through such measures by the TDP government.

Sand, soil, water even medicines and healthcare of the poor including 104 and 108 services were not spared when it comes to looting, by the ruling party leaders and this is an unpardonable crime. It is pertinent to note that these noble schemes of 104 and 108 have been turned into avenues of plunder by TDP leaders.

Villagers told me that in the name of Inditrade, a bogus firm in this constituency, made its appearance on the scene. It promised higher rates of interest and after collecting crores of rupees from gullible villagers, disappeared overnight. The men behind this cheating were TDP leaders, they said. It was these ruling party leaders who acted as brokers and lured people with the promise of higher rates of interest.

“If higher ups in the government back criminals in this fashion, what is the fate of the poor? How can we expect justice,“ they lamented. They told me that in name, a CID investigation has been ordered, but, there has been no progress in the case even after one year. Not one of the victims got a rupee back so far, they complained. All this was on account of the backdoor deals struck by the higher ups in the government, they pointed out.

One of the victims was Dasari Savitramma, whose husband deposited Rs.20 lakhs in this company. This sum was meant for the medical education of their son. She told me with moist eyes that after the company shut down, he died of a heart attack at the age of 45. Similarly, two other victims died of heart attacks, after having being cheated by this firm. I was deeply saddened to learn about this scam, which followed scams involving Agrigold and Kesava Reddy group of educational institutions.

It is unfortunate that in spite of CID investigation, investors and depositors did not get a single rupee. The guilty don’t get punished and government bigwigs protect them and try to grab their assets. This has been the pattern. To crown its saga of misdeeds, the chief minister raises his hand against one of the victims who came to him to seek justice!

I have a question for the chief minister—have you fulfilled at least one of the promises made over the past four years on the occasion of International Day for Persons with Disabilties? Isn’t this sudden activity on your part when elections are around the corner, an exercise in deception? Do you at least remember the fact that your manifesto stated that the differently-abled would be entitled to free education from KG to PG and that you would make one such member a cabinet minister?