The desire to be close to the boss is hard to resist for many. Some even pay a price for it but in this case, it appears to be the boss at the receiving end. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is building a house for himself, a home in Velagapudi. A G+1 structure with aesthetically pleasing design with open spaces, greenery gently giving way to the house itself. But temptations are hard to overcome as proved by Dr P. Narayana, minister in the Naidu Cabinet. With proximity to the CM apparently being the key for Narayana, he too has built a house for himself, just two plots down the street from Naidu’s under-construction residence. But old habits, as they say, are hard things to get rid of, and Narayana, known for his schools and colleges, replicated his apparent favourite shoebox design for his house too, all four floors in a 2,500-square yard plot sticking out like a sore thumb, casting a shadow of utter sterility to the Amaravati inspired Naidu’s residence. Narayana may run schools and colleges but clearly, he missed out some basic lessons in ensuring ambience where it matters most, his boss’s home.
All in on AI? Naidu makes it a must
Like any good leader, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has several options for a given situation up his sleeve but one thing is certain: There is no option on being tech-savvy. The man who never fails to champion tech adoption was at it again at a recent Cabinet meeting where he reportedly made sure there is no escape button clause when it comes to being up to speed on modern technologies. And so, his ministers were advised to gain at least a basic understanding of artificial intelligence, quantum computing and other emerging technologies. The advice was followed with a warning: leaders who fail to adapt to changing times risk appearing like those old floppy disks that have now gone out of fashion. Naidu, who loves all things IT, has been pitching for dovetailing AI and futuristic technologies in governance, and the ministers ended up attending an unexpected AI awareness class from the tech-savvy CM.
Court snub for eager beaver Raju
The law, as many a film hero taught, has long arms. With long arms, drawing a red line, one even politicians carrying an air of invincibility around them cannot cross, becomes an easy task. Coming face to face with this reality was AP Assembly Deputy Speaker K. Raghu Rama Krishna Raju. Recently, when the Andhra Pradesh High Court took up hearing on a petition alleging construction of a temple in government land without requisite permissions at Akiveedu in West Godavari district, Raju wanted to present his arguments on the matter in the court, in person. The court wondered how he could be permitted to do so as he was neither a petitioner, nor a respondent and having no locus standi forcing Raju to leave the court red faced.
Adireddy dad and son get the shove
All is not well with the Rajamahendravaram MLA Adireddy Srinivas’s family. His father Adireddy Apparao is an ex-MLC, and Srinvas’ wife Adireddy Bhavani was the MLA before Srinivas was given the chance by the TD. The popular belief is that the TD’s generosity towards the Adireddy family has much to do with how the family stood by Naidu when he was lodged in the Rajahmundry Central Jail during the YSRC rule. But of late, the father and son duo have reportedly been claiming a certain closeness to Naidu, word of which has reached the TD chief, along with the senior Adireddy’s purported phone call recording during which he is heard speaking to a woman in a disrespectful manner. The fallout was swift, the Adireddy father and son were not invited to a party meeting chaired by Naidu at Nidadavole leaving people wondering if the good days for the family are coming to an end.
Narayana grabs everything, even plants
Heatwaves and summers are synonymous but Nellore this year has seen a political heatwave that swept through the city with some speed. At its heart was, ironically, a tree plantation drive meant to cool the city. YSRC MLC Parvathareddy Chandrasekhar Reddy declared he found the root of the problem — minister P. Narayana in his constituency cornered all premium-category saplings, leaving the rest of Nellore to make do with plants falling in the ho-hum category. Reddy’s charges that each sapling came with a price tag of Rs 4,100 for planting, needed another Rs 6,800 for two years of maintenance, and why plant saplings in the peak of summer, were quickly trimmed by Narayana who said not a rupee of the city’s civic body was spent on the plantation drive and that his “well-wishers” funded the greenery push. All that cost per sapling was Rs 3,700 the cost which included a sturdy tree guard, digging up cement roads and neatly refixing them, along with watering until survival. Whether all plants get the same treatment remains to be seen as 40,000 more are to be planted in addition to the 10,000 already planted.
Full tank claims, empty pumps
Fuel, it appears, is in full supply. Just not always at the pump. Across Andhra Pradesh, motorists recently found themselves spending more time in queues than on roads, despite official claims of no shortages. Dispatch figures looked healthy, explanations sounded reassuring, but “no stock” boards seemed to have their own schedule. In cities like Vijayawada, Tirupati and Visakhapatnam, queues stretched long enough to test both fuel levels and patience. Some motorists moved from one bunk to another, discovering that availability was often a matter of timing rather than supply. Amid this, the Centre quietly asked the state to roll back its decision to route bulk diesel supplies for Amaravati works through retail outlets, a move that raised more questions than it answered. Particularly at a time when retail pumps were struggling to keep up with demand. By the day, the situation had produced a familiar paradox. Supply was normal, queues were not leaving many wondering if the shortage was of fuel, or of clarity.
Lokesh holds out stern lesson for errant MLA
When ego takes the fast track, trouble trails close as was seen at a couple of toll plazas in AP recently. The barriers did their job, behaviour of motorists was the problem, and these were none other than aides and supporters of Gannavaram MLA Yarlagadda Venkat Rao, who turned a routine wait at the Gandepalli toll plaza in East Godavari district into a roadside performance. What began as a delay quickly escalated into confrontation, counter allegations and cross police cases ensuring the issue moved far beyond the toll lane. Days earlier, near Rudravaram in Nandyal district, followers of Srisailam MLA Budda Rajashekhar Reddy allegedly skipped the queue altogether, not on the road, but in conduct by forcing a toll plaza staffer into a vehicle for failing to recognise the legislator. Recognition, it seemed, was expected instantly with verification clearly optional. FASTag was meant to reduce friction, these episodes seemed determined to restore it. The queues cleared quickly, but the after-effects did not — they travelled further to Amaravati, ending with Nara Lokesh advising leaders to drop arrogance: A remark that sounded less like routine guidance and more like a receipt generated after the journey. No names were mentioned. None were required, raising the question if Lokesh’s comment was an advisory, or an acknowledgement, neatly wrapped for public display.
Contributions from Avinash P. Surbamanyam, B. Sohan Lal, Md Ilyas, , Sampat G. Samritan, Pathri Rajasekhar, Vadrevu Srinivas
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
