Dokka wants special package for artisans of capital city region

GUNTUR: Welcoming the chief minister Chandrababu Naidu's decision to announce the boundaries of the capital city, former minister Dokka Manikyavaraprasad, a 2-time legislator from proposed capital region constituency-Tadikonda, has urged the CM to grant welfare pensions to all the poor of capital city region as a special case. 

He demanded that a special package should be announced to compensate tenant farmers and artisans including fishermen. In a letter to the CM, Varaprasad thanked the CM for announcing the boundaries so early as it would arrest the speculation of land prices in the region. 

He, however, demanded the payment of equal compensation to the assigned land tillers on par with the patta land farmers. "A comprehensive socio-economic survey should be taken up in the proposed capital city region in order to assess the impact of pooling of green fields on various sections of people. 

Of the total 42000 population of Tullur manda, farmers consist only 10000 and remaining were from other occupations," he explained. He expressed anguish over the tenant farmers and farm labours of the region as the government had been talking about the farmers' compensation. He said that it was painful to understand the lives of so many thousands of people in his constituency. 

"Poor and marginal from artisan families would be the biggest victims of the ongoing process. A special care should be taken to alleviate their lives," urged Varaprasad. He feared that economic imbalances would increase if proper care was not taken to protect the lives and rights of the artisans and fishermen in the capital region.