Protests against Telangana, powerless in Andhra Pradesh

Hyderabad:  Protests against a decision to create Telangana state have left Andhra Pradesh staring at a major power crisis. I-T city Hyderabad has been suffering power cuts since morning and several trains have been cancelled, with thousands of electricity employees staying away from work. In another city in coastal Andhra, there is a shoot-at-sight order since large-scale violence on Saturday.

Here are 10 big developments in this story:

1. Over 30,000 striking electricity employees say they will continue their protests for at least two more weeks. Their agitation has shut down six of the seven units at the power plant in Vijayawada, which meets over a third of the state's power demand.
2. The Vijayawada plant shutdown has led to a shortfall of over 3,500 megawatts, forcing authorities to resort to long power cuts in Hyderabad and several other cities. Officials even fear a collapse of the southern grid, which caters to neighbouring states.
3. "Large parts of coastal Andhra Pradesh, also known as Seemandhra, have been affected by the protests and the power crisis. Reports say ATMs are not functioning in cities like Vijayawada, while several trains have been cancelled since yesterday.
4. There is a shoot-at-sight order and curfew at Vizianagaram town in coastal Andhra Pradesh after violence and arson over the weekend by anti-Telangana protesters. Protesters allegedly set a bank on fire and damaged public and private properties.
5. Some 70,000 striking government employees have not taken their salary for the past two months, ever since the ruling Congress gave in to demands for carving out Telangana, with Hyderabad as its capital.
6. Telangana is one of the three regions of Andhra Pradesh.  The other two - the 13 districts of Seemandhra as the Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions are jointly called - are in total shutdown.
7. Factions in the Congress have alleged that the protests have the backing of Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who belongs to Seemandhra and has publicly opposed the division of Andhra Pradesh. Sources have ruled out any action against Mr Reddy but say the ruling Congress is closely watching how the Chief Minister handles the crisis.
8. Sources say the Congress may have persuaded union ministers K Chiranjeevi and Pallam Raju not to press for their resignations. The two leaders, along with Kotal Surya Prakash Reddy had resigned as ministers last week to protest against Telangana.
9. Anti-Telangana protests have triggered competitive fasts by politicians. After YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy, now Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu has launched an indefinite fast.
10. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has accused both Mr Naidu and Jagan of changing their stand on Telangana, with an eye on polls next year. Both had been seen to be ambiguous about the proposed new state earlier as they drew their support from the non-Telangana regions.

Telangana fallout: Seemandhra faces power crisis as Vijayawada stations shut down

Hyderabad:  The government is grappling with aggressive whiplash over last evening's decision to proceed with the creation of a Telangana state.

Here are 10 big developments in the story:

1. Telangana is one of the three regions of Andhra Pradesh. The other two - the 13 districts of "Seemandhra" as the Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions are jointly called - are in total shutdown with shops, schools and offices closed.
2. Power supply in at least six of the 13 districts in Seemandhra has been critically hit as all but one of the seven units of the Vijaywada Thermal Power Station are closed, with employees participating in protests. Apart from Vijayawada, the neigbbouring districts of Eluru, Guntur, Machlipatnam and East and West Godavari districts are also facing power crisis. The power station provides about 120 MW power to Hyderabad as well. The authorities say since protesters are present at the power station, it is unlikely that power generation will resume soon.
3. All major routes leading to Tirupati and the famous Tirumala temple have been barricaded by protesters. The police have decided to impose prohibitory orders in the Cyberabad area from tomorrow.
4. But in some relief for the Congress, its state legislators and ministers in the Andhra Pradesh government have decided not to quit office. Instead, they say they will defeat the resolution to create a new Telangana state that was cleared by the Union Cabinet last evening.  The assembly has 294 seats, with 118 for Telangana legislators, and 175 for Seemandhra.
5. That resolution will be sent to the country's President who will then refer it to the state legislature.
6. The Centre has already made it clear that the state assembly's feedback will not be binding.
7. Union minister Chiranjeevi has resigned in protest over the green-light for a Telangana state; another, Pallam Raju, says he will quit today. (Union minister Pallam Raju to resign over Telangana decision)
8. Congress MP L Rajagopal, who is from Vijayawada, has said he will move the Supreme Court challenging the government's decision to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh, reports the Press Trust of India.
9. Jagan Mohan Reddy, chief of the YSR Congress which has been fighting the plans to split the state, has said that he will begin an indefinite fast from tomorrow. "Is it justifiable to split the state without an assembly resolution? What kind of democracy are we living in when people intentionally choose to ignore the assembly?" he said.
10. Hyderabad will start out as a shared capital for 10 years, after which it will belong to Telangana. Who gets to keep the prosperous IT hub has been a major headline of the controversial decision.