Date:12/04/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/04/12/stories/2007041205040600.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Cabinet scraps land allotment to YSR's son

Special Correspondent

Land to be auctioned to encourage industries in Kadapa dt.

Notification for auction; upset price of Rs. 15,000

Panel set up to probe Sarva Siksha Abhiyan scam

HYDERABAD: Reversing its earlier decision, the Andhra Pradesh Cabinet has cancelled allotment of 487 acres of land in Kadapa district to M/s Raghuram Cements in which Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy's son Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy is a director.

At a meeting here on Wednesday, the Cabinet, however, resolved to auction the land to encourage industries in the drought-prone Kadapa district. The notification for the open auction would be issued by the Collector shortly, quoting an upset price of Rs. 15,000 an acre as against Rs. 1 lakh, the price offered to Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy at the previous Cabinet meeting held on April 29.

Briefing reporters later, Information Minister Mohd Ali Shabbir said these decision followed a letter written by Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy rejecting the offer in view of the political controversy raked over it. However, M/s Raghuram Cements would participate in the auction, quoting Rs. 1 lakh per acre and would not go beyond this rate even by a rupee under any circumstances. Taking serious note of the funds scam in the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, the Cabinet constituted a committee comprising Finance Minister K. Rosaiah, Revenue Minister D. Prasada Rao, Chief Secretary, Finance Secretary and director, Audit, to go into the issue of Government departments/agencies opening accounts in commercial banks.

The committee would scrutinise all PD (public deposit) accounts opened by officials with Government funds that attracted no auditing. Severe action would be taken against the guilty.