YSRCP Chief directs party MPs to raise Andhra Pradesh's key issues in Parliament's winter session

Amaravathi (AndhraPradesh) [India], December 1 (ANI): YSRCP President and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday directed the party's MPs to strongly raise the most pressing public issues of the state during the Parliament winter session beginning today.
The 6th Session of the 18th Lok Sabha and the 269th Session of the Rajya Sabha will commence today, at 11 am, marking the beginning of the Winter Session of Parliament.
In a statement, the YSRCP President urged his party's Members of Parliament to focus on safeguarding Andhra Pradesh's rights and to highlight the severe challenges currently faced by farmers, workers, and vulnerable communities.
Reddy expressed his deep concern over the extensive damage caused by Cyclone Montha, which caused widespread destruction in October and early November, noting that it had devastated lakhs of acres of crops across the coastal districts of the state.
He said farmers who lost their entire harvest are under unbearable financial strain, as neither the state nor the Centre has provided compensation, and also criticised the failure to ensure Minimum Support Price (MSP), alleging that the present government has left farmers at the mercy of traders and middlemen.
He further noted that MSP has sharply fallen across major crops, including paddy, maize, black gram, cotton, red gram, banana, mirchi and mango, pushing the agriculture sector into a severe crisis and asked his party MPs to demand emergency relief funds and immediate restoration of guaranteed MSP procurement.
Reddy also said that free crop insurance--previously provided without a premium during the YSRCP government--has now been discontinued, leaving farmers unprotected during natural disasters. Input subsidy is also not being offered, he added.
He alleged that the discontinuation of e-crop enumeration has caused confusion in crop data and denied farmers eligibility for compensation and assistance, and said that mirchi farmers were promised financial support but were "deceived", and mango farmers suffered losses due to non-payment by companies.
Raising another major concern, Reddy pointed to the mass deletion of MGNREGA job cards, claiming that lakhs of rural labourers, including 18.63 lakh job card holders, have been removed from the rolls, undermining the livelihood security of poor families.
He demanded immediate restoration of all genuine job cards and clearance of pending wages.
He also instructed MPs to strongly oppose what he described as attempts to privatise parts of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant.
Allowing private players to take over individual units, he said, is a dangerous step toward complete privatisation.
He urged the Centre to cancel such plans, allocate captive iron ore mines and revive the plant, noting that thousands of workers and contract employees depend on it for their survival.
Reddy expressed concern over what he termed the deterioration of law and order in the state and alleged political targeting, unlawful arrests and misuse of police machinery, adding that security cover for several leaders and representatives has been withdrawn, putting them at risk. He also flagged poor conditions in government hostels and welfare institutions, saying students are deprived of basic facilities such as food, drinking water and hygiene.
Calling for a united effort to protect the interests of Andhra Pradesh, he urged YSRCP MPs to fight for pending central funds, employment generation and overall welfare, stating that "The voice of the people must be heard strongly in Parliament." (ANI)