VIJAYAWADA: Even though there is no sign as yet of Chiranjeevi hitting the road, the ruling Congress government does not want to take chances. The state government is discreetly making arrangements to extend reservations to Kapus, which it avers will rein in the large number of Kapu voters from rallying behind the matinee idol.
Highly placed sources indicate that the Rajasekhara Reddy government would make an official announcement on the inclusion of Kapus in the BCs list in November-end or December first week, four months ahead of the 2009 Assembly polls. The government has already handed over the job of conducting the socio-economic survey on Kapu community to the Indian Institute of Economics (IIE), Hyderabad.
Sources said the institute was picked up for the study by the BC Commission following a recommendation by the Group of Ministers (GoM). The IIE has been asked to prepare a comprehensive report on the socio-economic backwardness of four groups — Kapu, Telaga, Balija and Ontari. Sources said IIE vice-chairman V K Srinivasan, a former civil servant, would personally monitor the study.
A Srinivasan, involved in the policy-making decisions in central and state governments, has been handpicked by the government on the lines of P S Krishnan, who headed the one-man commission to study the minority quota, a source said. Though some ministers — lobbying hard for the BC status for the Kapus — wanted the study to be completed within two months before Chiranjeevi floats his new party, the state government is said to have granted a full six-month period. "Unless we go indepth and make a critical analysis, the report will be locked up in legal challenges. So, we have granted six months time to complete the study in a comprehensive manner," a senior Kapu minister told 'TOI.' Sources said the government is considering giving BC status to Kapus outside the existing BC quota.
"We have not taken up the issue only to get political mileage as we know how complex the quota issue has been. We wanted to lay a concrete foundation prior to building up the case," said another Kapu minister. He explained that the chief minister is serious about the welfare of Kapus and had enhanced the budget allocation for Kapu students' reimbursement from Rs 1.5 crore in 2004 to Rs 25 crore this year.
s0urce: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-06-27/hyderabad/27783246_1_kapus-bc-status-bc-quota
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regards,
S.K.Y
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