CM Kiran Kumar Reddy Announces Rs.1 a kg Rice For Poor

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who was in Tirupathi on Wednesday, made an announcement at a public meeting that the poor in the state will get rice at Rs. 1 a kg. The BPL (Below Poverty Line) families will get the subsidised rice through Public Distribution System (PDS) starting from November 1, incidentally, the state formation day.

The scheme is being seen in political circles as an attempt to divert public attention from the ongoing strike by various sections of people in Telangana for separate state. It was Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder NT Rama Rao who first introduced Rs. 2 a kg rice scheme for poor families in Andhra Pradesh after coming to power in early 1980s. His son-in-law N Chandrababu Naidu discontinued the scheme after dislodging him from power in 1995. YS Rajasekhara Reddy re-introduced the scheme after bringing the Congress to power in 2004. Kiran Kumar Reddy has now slashed the price of rice to just one rupee a kg. Andhra Pradesh has now joined Tamil Nadu and Kerala in offering this scheme for the poor.