The economic rationale for carving out Telangana from Andhra Pradesh tends to collapse, with the 10 districts in the supposedly backward region excelling the rest of the state as an investment destination in recent years. People associated with the Justice Srikrishna Commission confirmed to FE that a study by the panel did not corroborate the contention that these districts are backward in economic and human development terms. The panel is expected to submit its report to the government Friday.
The panel’s study was on whether the Telangana region was backward compared to the rest of the state, especially Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra.
?The whole demand for Telangana, according to those agitating for it, is based on the contention that the 10 districts are backward in development and human development terms. The Commission during its work found that this was, in fact, not true. In the last few years, a lot of investment has flown into Hyderabad which is at the centre of the Telangana area. It has also been found that human indicators like Infant Mortality Rates (IMR) and Maternal Mortality Rates (MMR) in Telangana are comparable to Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra,? said a source. The committee toured all 23 districts in the state over the last couple of months before arriving at this conclusion.
?These are 10 districts within a state which have seen a lot of investment in recent years as well as improvement in healthcare and nutrition and employment opportunities. Comparatively, these districts are as good as the rest of the state,? the source added.
The Srikrishna panel is therefore not expected to recommend anything decisive about the demand for a separate state. On Tuesday, the Commission held a press conference where member secretary VK Duggal said that the panel would be presenting several options before the government as well as the pros and cons related to each proposal. ?Hopefully, the largest number of people will have the highest sense of satisfaction with the report. We hope to achieve that,? he said.
Fearing trouble after the Commission presents its report, the Centre has rushed additional para military forces to Andhra Pradesh. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went into a huddle with senior Cabinet colleagues including home minister P Chidambaram, defence minister AK Antony, besides law minister M Veerappa Moily, the Congress party official in charge of Andhra Pradesh. There is a distinct unease in the government in the run-up to the New Year, and the Srikrishna committee’s report is expected to create more problems than solutions.