Telangana stir: As it happened on Wednesday

Protests continued in Andhra Pradesh`s Seemandhra against the central government`s decision to carve out Telangana.

Zee Media Bureau/Kamna Arora/Manisha Singh 11:08 pm: Jagan Reddy taken to hospital YSR Congress leader YS Jaganmohan Reddy is evicted by police from the site of his hunger strike and taken to a hospital. He was shifted to Nizam`s Institute of Medical Sciences. 10:05 pm: APCC president writes to PM, urges him to convene political parties meeting Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President Botsa Satyanarayana has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, urging him to convene a meeting of political parties to create an atmosphere of goodwill and trust in Andhra Pradesh. "I am of the view that it would be desirable for the Union Government to initiate discussions with all political parties to create an atmosphere of goodwill and trust, " Satyanarayana said. 9:45 pm: Will ask GoM to reconsider division of Andhra, says AP CM Andhra Pradesh CM N Kiran Kumar Reddy said he would try to persuade the GoM set up to look into various issues related to Telangana to reconsider the decision to divide the state. "We have studied in detail various problems department- wise, in case of bifurcation, and presented them to Congress high command over the last one-and-a-half years. We will sincerely and dedicatedly ask the GoM to reconsider the (Centre`s) decision in view of the current situation," he said.

8:20 pm: Allay genuine fears of people of Seemandhra, says CPI CPI asked the Centre to allay the apprehensions of the people of Seemandhra and other regions of Andhra Pradesh before the new state of Telangana is created. Senior CPI leader D Raja said that the Centre should assure the people that their concerns will be addressed and no region will be let down. 8:06 pm: ‘Doctor’s have advised Jagan Reddy to withdraw fast’ YSRCP senior leader Konatala Ramakrishna told reporters that Jagan Reddy`s sugar was falling and doctors had strongly advised him to withdraw the fast. YSR Congress party president’s indefinite hunger strike for the rollback of Union Cabinet`s decision to divide Andhra Pradesh entered fifth day today. 7:00 pm: Invoke ESMA in Seemandhra region, Congress tells AP govt The Congress party has asked the Andhra Pradesh government to invoke Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) to bring normalcy in Seemandhra region. Congress spokesperson PC Chacko said that the government was willing to talk to agitators. He added that he state government should take strong action and ESMA should be invoked to bring normalcy. 6:00 pm: Jagan Reddy’s mother meets BJP president YSR Congress chief Jagan Reddy’s mother meets BJP president Rajnath Singh. Jagan is on an indefinite fast against the Centre`s decision to divide Andhra Pradesh entered fifth day even as even as his condition continued to deteriorate. 5:25 pm: Have nothing to do with tussle between AP govt and Naidu, says Sushilkumar Shinde Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said that they had nothing to do with the ongpoing tussle between Andhra Pradesh government and Chandrababu Naidu regarding TDP chief`s indefinite fast in the Andhra Bhavan premises in Delhi. 4:25 pm: Andhra Pradesh govt employees to continue strike The talks between the Andhra Pradesh government and striking Andhra Pradesh Non-Gazetted Officers (APNGOs) Association fail as employees vow to continue indefinite strike in Seemandhra, reports PTI. Chief Minister Kiran Reddy had called the leaders of APNGOs Association for discussions on Wednesday after the talks between the latter and a group of ministers on Tuesday failed to make a breakthrough. 3:25 pm: YSR Congress leaders meet President YSR Congress party honorary president YS Vijayamma called on President Pranab Mukherjee and urged him to keep Andhra Pradesh united. Vijayamma was accompanied by Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Sitaram Yechuri and leaders of her party. Later, talking to reporters, Vijayamma said she drew the President`s attention towards the protests in Seemandhra and the strike by government employees including teachers, transport workers and electricity employees. She said 60 percent of the people outside of Telangana were on the streets and the administration had come to a standstill in the region. Also Read: YSR Congress leaders meet President 2:25 pm: TRS urges Andhra Governor to sack CM The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) on Wednesday urged Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan to dismiss Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy for his bias towards one region. A delegation of TRS leaders called on the Governor and submitted a memorandum, urging him to sack the Chief Minister and recommend the President`s rule. They said the administration has come to a standstill in the state. TRS floor leader in State Assembly E Rajender told reporters after the meeting that they conveyed to the Governor that the Chief Minister had been trying to stall formation of Telangana state by sending false reports to the Centre. The TRS leaders drew Governor`s attention towards the allegation by former director general of police V Dinesh Reddy that the Chief Minister tried to put pressure on him to say that Maoists would become stronger if Telangana becomes a separate state. They said the Chief Minister was acting as a leader of Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra) and had failed to take steps to deal with the strike by government employees. Also Read: TRS urges Andhra Governor to sack CM 1:45 pm: `Power for emergency services restored in Seemandhra` A news channel has quoted Congress leader Digvijaya Singh as saying that power for emergency services has been restored in Seemandhra. The leader added that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy will again hold talks with representatives of unions for power plants, who are on strike against the decision to carve out Telangana. 1:20 pm: First meeting of GoM on Telangana on Friday The first meeting of reorganised GoM on the issue of Telangana will be held on Friday. The government had on Tuesday reorganised the GoM, reducing the number of members from ten to seven. Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde will head the meeting. Besides Shinde, Defence Minister AK Antony, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Minister of Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas M Veerappa Moily and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh are the members of the reconstituted GoM. Minister of State for Personnel and Prime Minister`s Office V Narayanasamy will be the Special Invitee in the reconstituted Group of Ministers which will look into the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and formation of Telangana. Apart from Antony, the Union Ministers who were newly inducted in the GoM are Azad, Moily and Ramesh. 12:37 pm: Curfew relaxed in Vizianagaram for 2 hours Curfew in violence-hit Vizianagaram town in the district was relaxed for two hours this morning to facilitate people to purchase essential commodities as the situation is fast returning to normal. Deputy Inspector General of Police (Vizag) P Umapathi told a news agency that curfew was eased for two hours between 7 AM and 9 AM. The authorities took the decision to lift the curfew for two hours as people were of the view that the duration of one hour was not enough to buy essential commodities, he said. "The situation is now completely under control. No fresh incidents of violence have been reported since the last two days in Vizianagaram," Umapathi said. Also Read: Telangana turmoil: Curfew relaxed in Vizianagaram for 2 hours 12:35 pm: Congress responsible for Andhra Pradesh mess, says BJP Bharatiya Janata Party general secretary Rajiv Pratap Rudy blamed the Congress for the mess created in Andhra Pradesh. The Congress is indulged more in politics than in the interest of people, said Rudy. 12:25 pm: `Unfortunate that Andhra CM unhappy over Telangana` Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh told a news channel that he has spoken to N Kiran Kumar Reddy and called it unfortunate that the Andhra CM is unhappy with the decision on Telangana. Underlining that the Telangana decision was in the public domain for long, Singh noted that the decision was taken after due consultation with every political party. Ruling out that the decision was related to elections, Singh cleared that there would be no review on decision to form Telangana. He further urged the Telangana Rashtra Samithi not to give provocative statements. On former chief minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief Chandrababu Naidu`s protest in New Delhi, Singh said while he has great respect for the TDP chief "after giving in writing (his assent) if he backtracks then what can be done". Singh spoke in a similar vein about the protest fast by YSR Congress party head YS Jaganmohan Reddy. "Jaganmohan Reddy is like my son, his father was my very good friend... After giving his support to Telangana, if he also does a U-turn what can we do." Singh added: "The Congress party took the decision after much thought and deliberations, and we had anticipated these developments." Also Read: All parties were on board on Telangana decision: Congress 11:40 am: Jagan continues fast YSR Congress party YS Jaganmohan Reddy`s indefinite fast against the Centre`s decision to divide Andhra Pradesh entered fifth day on Wednesday even as his condition continued to deteriorate. Jagan, as the MP from Kadapa is popularly known, is suffering from dehydration and is having fever, doctors who examined him said. With the young leader turning weak and the sugar level coming down, doctors have advised him to take fluids. They warned that if he continues the fast, he may slip into coma. Jagan is also refusing to take fluids or any medicines. People from different parts of the state continue to pour in at his office-cum-residence at Lotus Pond to meet and declare their support. Also Read: Jagan continues fast despite deteriorating health 11:30 am: Power crisis deepens in Andhra Pradesh A fresh round of talks is expected between Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and striking power sector employees today. Normal life has been completely hit in Andhra Pradesh due to anti-Telangana protests. Majority of 13 districts of Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra) were still in dark, causing severe hardships to people. Medical services were the worst hit with many government and private hospitals postponing surgeries. Strike by doctors of government-run hospitals added to patients` woes. The situation could prove to be life-threatening for patients, whose condition is critical. Industrial production has come to a standstill while airports at Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada are running on back-up power. Movement of trains were affected due to the strike. About 4,000 Megawatt generation has come to a halt due to the strike by the employees at all major thermal and hydel power plants. Also Read: Seemandhra remains without power as strike continues 11:10 pm: AGP president meets Naidu Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) president and former Assam chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta met Chandrababu Naidu, who is on indefinite hunger strike in New Delhi against bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. Mahanta extended support to TDP and said that the government must come forward and resolve the problem. 11:05 pm: Doctors examine Naidu A team of two doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital examines TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu, whose indefinite hunger strike against the creation of a separate Telangana state entered the third day on Wednesday, at Andhra Bhawan in New Delhi. Also Read: Chandrababu Naidu continues fast in Delhi 11:00 am: YSR Congress delegation to meet President The YSR Congress delegation, under the leadership of its honorary president YS Vijayalakshmi, will President Pranab Mukherjee amidst tensions in Andhra Pradesh. On Tuesday, the delegation met the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leadership in New Delhi and sought cooperation in stalling the proposed Andhra Pradesh state division. 10:50 am: Security tightened in Vijayanagaram Amidst the ongoing hullaballoo over Andhra Pradesh`s bifurcation, security has been tightened in Vijayanagaram district. 10:20 am: Pallam Raju`s presence in CABE meeting uncertain Uncertainty looms over the presence of HRD Minister MM Pallam Raju, who has resigned over Telengana issue, at the crucial CABE meeting on Thursday, which among others would deliberate on the status of the mid-day meal programme. The Minister`s close aides are uncertain over his presence at the meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE), the highest decision making body on education in the country. Raju has refused to join office ever since he resigned from the Union Council of Ministers and had also skipped the meeting of the Union Cabinet yesterday. Also Read: Pallam Raju`s presence in CABE meeting uncertain 8:35 am: Protests at Andhra Bhawan Supporters of Telugu Desam Party chief N Chandrababu Naidu protest at Andhra Bhawan in New Delhi, after they were not allowed to enter its premises. Naidu is on fast since Monday, demanding talks with the leaders of all regions of the state to find an amicable solution to the current turmoil. 8:00 am: Power employees to continue strike Employees of the power sector in Andhra Pradesh`s Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions) will continue with their indefinite strike on Wednesday as talks between Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and leaders of electricity employees` Joint Action Committee (JAC) failed on Tuesday night. JAC leaders told reporters after the meeting that they would continue the strike till a clear assurance that the state will not be divided. They also rejected the Chief Minister`s appeal to at least exempt the emergency services. The central government, which ruled out imposing President`s rule in the restive state, late Tuesday announced setting up of a seven-member group of ministers (GoM) to look into issues of the bifurcation. About 30,000 employees of power utilities in Seemandhra`s 13 districts stayed away from work, almost paralysing generation and transmission. The strike has plunged several towns and hundreds of villages in darkness. Production in hundreds of industries also has come to a grinding halt.