TIRUPATI: In a bold bid to woo the poor and claim the welfare vote, chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy on Wednesday announced that subsidised rice will be supplied to white ration card holders at Rs 1 per kg from Nov. 1, Andhra Pradesh Formation Day.The move represents an attempt by the chief minister to throw off the shadow of Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, who is seen as a welfare messiah by the masses, and challenge the latter’s son Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy’s claim to inherit that legacy. The subsidised rice programme, popularly known as the `2 a kg scheme, has always had an emotive appeal to Andhra Pradesh voters ever since it was dreamt up by the late N T Rama Rao in 1983. By slashing that price to `1, a sum that buys no more than a toffee in the market, Kiran Reddy hopes to emerge as his own man.Addressing a big gathering of women and farmers at meeting here, Kiran Kumar disclosed the government’s decision amidst loud cheers from the audience. “This is our Dasara gift to 2.26 crore BPL families in the state,” he said.When it was launched as the Rs 2 a kg rice scheme in 1983, the market differential was a mere 40 paise per kg. Today, at Re 1 a kg, it has ballooned to Rs 18 per kg. The subsidy burden on the state exchequer will now soar by Rs 600 crore to Rs 2,600 crore. With each of the 2.26 crore BPL families entitled to a maximum of 20 kg per month, the rice requirement will be 3.3 lakh tonnes per month. At the Tirupati fuction, the chief minister went on to unveil some more voter-friendly intitiaves. He launched an initiative to issue certificates -- including caste and income documentation -- through e-Seva centres in selected districts including Chittoor on a pilot basis from Oct. 17. “This initiative will help in fighting corruption,” he said and engaged the participants in a small debate. He asked them to raise their hands who had at one time or other greased the palms of officials to get some work done. Almost all of the audience raised their hands.
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