Opposition is trying to politicise the issue, says Chief Minister

Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has said that onions will be supplied at subsidised rates in all market yards from December 13. Andhra Pradesh is the only State in the country that has been selling onions at ₹25 a kg at all rythu bazaars.

“I express my pain and anguish the way the Opposition is trying to politicise the issue,” Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy said during a short duration discussion on the crisis in the Assembly.

Drawing a comparison with the situation in other States, he pointed out that the subsidised price of onion in Bihar and West Bengal was ₹35 per kg and ₹59 per kg respectively, while it was ₹40 per kg in Telangana and ₹50 in Madhya Pradesh. And, at many States like Maharashtra have not even begun selling onions at subsidised rate.

“We have so far procured 38,496 quintals and also placed the highest indent of 2,100 tonnes of onions which are being imported and expected to arrive in Mumbai on December 12 or 13. Even as we are making sure that the common man gets relief, Leader of the Opposition N. Chandrababu Naidu and his partymen are bent on politicising the death of a man at Gudivada,” he said.

Minister for Marketing Mopidevi Venkata Ramana said that AP started supplying onions at subsidised rate from November 14 across 101 rythu bazaars across the State. Further, the Chief Minister issued instructions to seal the borders of the onion producing districts of Kurnool and Tadepalligudem to prevent illegal smuggling of the commodity.

Counter attack

Earlier, the House witnessed an animated debate on the issue with Minister for Civil Supplies Kodali Venkateswara Rao alias Nani, launching a counter attack on the TDP members accusing the latter of trying to draw political mileage out of an incident where one Sambi Reddy died after suffering from cardiac arrest at Gudiwada on Monday. Displaying videos of media interviews given by relatives of the deceased, Mr. Nani said that it was clear that Reddy was at the vegetable market when he suffered a cardiac arrest.