COMMITTEE FOR CONSULTATIONS ON THE SITUATION IN ANDHRA PRADESH REPORT December 2010 THE COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON Shri Justice B N Srikrishna (Retd.) Former Judge, Supreme Court of India MEMBER SECRETARY Shri Vinod Kumar Duggal, IAS (Retd.) Former Home Secretary, Government of India MEMBERS Prof (Dr.) Ranbir Singh Vice Chancellor, National Law University, Delhi Dr. Abusaleh Shariff Chief Economist /Senior Fellow, National Council of Applied Economic Research, Delhi Prof (Dr.) Ravinder Kaur Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT, Delhi The Inter State Council Secretariat (ISCS) provided full secretarial assistance including technical and budgetary support to the Committee CONTENTS VOLUME - I Prologue i Approach and Methodology iv Acknowledgements xii List of Tables, Figures, Appendices xvii Abbreviations xxix Chapter 1 Developments in Andhra Pradesh-A Historical Background 1 Chapter 2 Regional Economic and Equity Analysis 63 Chapter 3 Education and Health 125 Chapter 4 Water Resources, Irrigation and Power Development 177 Chapter 5 Public Employment Issues 245 Chapter 6 Issues Relating to Hyderabad Metropolis 295 Chapter 7 Sociological and Cultural Issues 341 Chapter 8 Law & Order and Internal Security Dimensions 423 Chapter 9 The Way Forward 425 VOLUME - II Appendices 1-173 Index 174 “In ages long past a great son of India, the Buddha, said that the only real victory was one in which all were equally victorious and there was defeat for no one. In the world today that is the only practical victory; any other way will lead to disaster”. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru speaking on „Disputes and Discord‟ in the United Nations General Assembly on October 3, 1960 Prologue It has not been an easy task. The mandate for the Committee entailed voluminous research work and wide consultations with all stakeholders. During these consultations, the Committee discussed with political parties and concerned groups all events of a serious historical, political, economic, social and cultural significance pertaining to the state of Andhra Pradesh since the country‟s independence. Essentially, the Committee, inter alia, was required to “examine the situation in the State of Andhra Pradesh with reference to the demand for a separate State of Telangana as well as the demand for maintaining the present status of a United Andhra Pradesh ……. seek a range of solutions that would resolve the present difficult situation and promote the welfare of all sections of the people, to identify the optimal solutions for this purpose and to recommend a plan of action and a road map ………. and to make any other suggestions or recommendations that the Committee may deem appropriate”. Once the Committee began to investigate the issues in detail, the scope of the research became both wider and deeper. Although the Committee realized at the outset that for an issue of such magnitude with regional as well as national implications, it would be hard-pressed to complete the task in the time allotted, it was equally conscious that any delay in the submission of the Report could only be detrimental to the cause and that delay may even provoke people‟s emotions, possibly with serious consequences. The timely completion and submission of the Report was, therefore, given the highest priority by the Committee. We only hope that the efforts invested have done justice to the task at hand. i 2. To look back, Andhra Pradesh was formed in 1956 as the first linguistic (Telugu) state with the merger of two different regions, with a majority of the people opting for integration and the rest, forming a sizable section, yearning for an independent identity for Telangana region. The formation of the state was somewhat conditional; brought about through the “Gentlemen‟s Agreement”, the objective of which was to bring the less developed region of Telangana on par with the rest of the state. This goal, which looked achievable at the time, however, was not fully realized. Disaffection on both the Telangana and the Andhra sides came to a head in the late sixties and early seventies with both sides, at one point, wishing to go their separate ways. At that time, the Six Point Formula ushered in by Smt. Indira Gandhi, and agreed to by both sides, served to dissolve the tension and keep the state united. Subsequently, the state saw significant economic and social progress for over three decades. As a result, Andhra Pradesh today stands as one of the front runners among the progressive states in the country. Indeed, it could arguably be said that this very progress has led Telangana to revive the demand for a separate state in order to gain greater political space and to bridge more rapidly the remaining, though diminishing, disparities. The resulting agitation which posed a serious law and order problem in the state in late 2009 - early 2010, eventually led to the constitution of this Committee. 3. The details of the approach and methodology followed by the Committee for completing the task are outlined later in this section of the Report while the comprehensive discussion on the subjects investigated has been covered in the subsequent portion. After preliminary meetings, and on examination of the memoranda received from various stakeholders and the general public, the areas needing research and investigation were identified by the Committee. These areas include Historical Background; Regional Economic and Equity Analysis; Education and Health; Water Resources, Irrigation and Power Development; Issues relating to Hyderabad Metropolis; Public Employment; Sociological and Cultural issues; and last but not the least the Internal Security dimensions. Every effort was made to collect exact ii data and information on these subjects which was analysed thoroughly and as accurately as possible. The legal and Constitutional aspects and the framework required for various possible options for resolution of the issue have been highlighted in Chapter 9 of the Report titled “The Way Forward”. 4. At the end of the investigation, it began to appear that there was a case both for a separate Telangana as well as for keeping the state united. Some other options, particularly bringing into focus the issue of backwardness of Rayalaseema region and some other parts of the state, were also suggested by different stakeholders and these too have been examined. After considering all aspects, the Committee found the balance tilting in favour of keeping the state united, though some valid and strong reasons that had continued to cause discontent in Telangana region since its merger indicated that the demand for separation was also not entirely unjustified. All these aspects have been discussed in detail in Chapter 9 of the Report and conclusions arrived at. The mandate given to the Committee having been fulfilled, the Committee now hopes that the maturity of our governance system will lead to a rightful resolution of this contentious issue. iii APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY The Committee and its Terms of Reference Pursuant to the Union Home Minister’s meeting with the eight recognized political parties of Andhra Pradesh on January 5, 2010, the Government of India constituted a Committee for consultations on the situation in Andhra Pradesh (CCSAP), with the following composition, vide Home Secretary’s d.o. letter dated February 3, 2010 (Appendix – AM.1), to hold wide ranging consultations with all sections of the people including all the political parties and various groups , with a view to examine the demand for a separate State of Telangana as well as for maintaining the present status of a united Andhra Pradesh: (1) Shri Justice B.N. Srikrishna, Retired Judge, Supreme Court of India ….. Chairman (2) Prof. (Dr.) Ranbir Singh, Vice Chancellor, National Law University, Delhi ….. Member (3) Dr. Abusaleh Shariff, Senior Research Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute, Delhi1 …..Member (4) Prof. (Dr.) Ravinder Kaur, Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi ….. Member (5) Shri V.K. Duggal, IAS (Retd.), Former Union Home Secretary ….. Member Secretary The Chairman, the Member Secretary and the Members, accordingly, joined the Committee on February 3, 2010. The Chairman was accorded the status of the sitting Supreme Court Judge and the Member Secretary, the rank of a Union Minister of State, vide Ministry of Home Affairs’ letter No. 1 Now Chief Economist/Senior Fellow, National Council of Applied Economic Research, Delhi iv 12012/1/2009 – SR (Pt. – I) dated March 3, 2010, read with Ministry of Home Affairs’ letter No. IV/12013/9/2004 – CSR dated August 14, 2007. The three Members were appointed on Part-Time basis (Appendices – AM.2 and AM.3). The Terms of Reference of the Committee, as reproduced below, were notified vide d.o. letter No. 12012/1/2009 – SR dated February 12, 2010, of Special Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs (Appendix – AM.4):- (1) To examine the situation in the State of Andhra Pradesh with reference to the demand for a separate State of Telangana as well as the demand for maintaining the present status of a united Andhra Pradesh. (2) To review the developments in the State since its formation and their impact on the progress and development of the different regions of the State. (3) To examine the impact of the recent developments in the State on the different sections of the people such as women, children, students, minorities, other backward classes, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. (4) To identify the key issues that must be addressed while considering the matters mentioned in items (1), (2) and (3) above. (5) To consult all sections of the people, especially the political parties, on the aforesaid matters and elicit their views; to seek from the political parties and other organizations a range of solutions that would resolve the present difficult situation and promote the welfare of all sections of the people; to identify the optimal solutions for this purpose; and to recommend a plan of action and a road map.