Shaking a leg in tune with the COVID times, the police personnel danced in front of the historic Osmania University Arts College, urging people to maintain COVID-19 etiquette.
The women in uniform displayed their dancing skills to the tunes of Cheyi Cheyi Kalapakura by Chowrastha, a Hyderabad-based band. Though the dance sequence had a launch followed by rewarding the best COVID policing by women police officers on May 12, the denouement was that a few senior officers, including several women officers, found it not so palatable and reportedly expressed their dismay over the entire episode that has stirred up a hornet's nest. In a text message after launching the song, a senior officer said, “the OU Arts College façade was cleaned up of all the banners and posters which were put up irresponsibly by various student groups, to bring out its resplendent grandeur.” What was meant to be a melody, turned out to be a discordant note.
A similar effort was made by the police in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh too but it did not end in any such sour note.
Back to hardcore policing
For Telangana police, it is back to 'normal policing' after rendering exemplary work in containing the spread of coronavirus.
In a message issued by the top brass on Saturday, the unit officers were asked to get down to hardcore policing.
Among others, the message reportedly hinted a possible rise in thefts, burglaries, bodily offences and even drunken brawls as liquor shops were reopened and normal economic activities gradually opening up again.
Drawing an interesting parallel!
The Opposition parties have started training their guns on the government over its intentions to extend the investment support, Rythu Bandhu, to only those farmers who cultivate crops suggested by it.
The parties considered it as inability of the government to continue the programme in its present shape due to empty coffers. Some politicians like Sangareddy legislator T. Jayaprakash Reddy (also called Jagga Reddy), who has the uncanny knack of always staying in the news with his maverick statements, has drawn an interesting parallel on the government’s plans on Rythu Bandhu. Stating that the plan of extending Rythu Bandhu to only those farmers who raise crop suggested by the government was a clear indication of curtailing it, he said: “Tomorrow the government may say that it would give Kalyana Lakshmi/Shaadi Mubarak benefit only if a girl marries a groom suggested by it!”
Centre, State on
collision course
The proposed amendments to the Electricity Act appears to be turning out to be bone of contention between the Central and the State governments with the Centre insisting on privatisation of the entire distribution network.
The State government is opposed to the proposal tooth and nail in that it could have an adverse impact on of the major welfare scheme in the State - free power to farmers round the clock. Telangana, being the only State to offer such a facility to farmers 24x7, has apprehensions on the efficacy with which the scheme will be implemented if it is handed over to the private players. And, the contention of the government has received appreciations given the need for giving necessary uplift to farm sector which had been ailing for some decades.
(Abhinay Deshpande,
B. Chandrashekhar & M. Rajeev)