Policy shift: A return to 'rural roots' from 'cyber-land'

From Ferraris to farmers, the policy shift has been too sharp to escape public attention.

The Congress government in Andhra Pradesh, which completed one month in office, has sought to position itself as being rural-centric and welfare-oriented in contrast to the hitech image that the previous TDP regime had acquired during its nine-year rule.

The cyber-savvy, urban-centric initiatives that marked the Chandrababu Naidu regime are giving way to populist policies targeting farmers.

Sops and subsidies are the new buzzwords as 'back to rural roots' seems to be the message of the Congress government led by chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy who has placed agriculture and irrigation high on his agenda.

The result: Formula-one (F1) track is out. Farmers are in. Question mark hovers over several hitech projects conceived by Naidu, the most ambitious among them being F1 track project that was to put Hyderabad on the international motor sports map.

The indications of the paradigm shift in policies were available minutes after Reddy was sworn-in with the signing of the first file sanctioning free power to farmers.

While the previous TDP government had steadfastly refused ex-gratia for farmers who committed suicide, the new regime came up with a comprehensive compensation package for debt-ridden farmers, low interest loans, scrapping of user charges and other pro-farmer initiatives.

"People have given us mandate for improving the living conditions of the farmers, the weaker sections and the rural poor. All our policies will be oriented towards this direction," said Reddy who led Congress to a stupendous victory in the polls.

While Naidu's regime was projected as a role model for reforms with World Bank and other international funding agencies sanctioning massive loans for economic restructuring, reforms have now taken a backseat with populism and welfare approach emerging as the guiding philosophy of the new regime.

"We are not opposed to reforms per se but we will pursue them with human touch. We will not bow to World Bank's conditionalities under any circumstances," Reddy said.

The earlier regime's pet programme 'Janmabhoomi', a rural development model involving people's participation and monetary contribution, has been given a quiet burial.

It is now replaced by 'Rajiv palle baata', a bi-weekly mass contact programme that takes Reddy to interior villages to interact with farmers and get a first-hand account of their problems.

A series of farmer-friendly initiatives, including ex-gratia to the kin of debt-trapped farmers who killed themselves, clearly spelt out the new government's focus area.

The TDP government had refused payment of ex-gratia on the ground that such a step would encourage more farmers to commit suicide for the sake of the dole.

User charges for government services, particularly in healthcare, was another issue that pro-reform Naidu refused to reconsider in the face of strong opposition from Congress and Left parties. Reddy, however, issued orders dispensing with the system.

The Congress government committed itself to completing 26 small, medium and big projects in a time frame of five years and has already taken up steps for institutional funding.

Another major initiative by the new government relates to reviving talks with the naxalites which had collapsed during the TDP regime. There is also a discernible shift in the policy towards naxalites with the Congress government hinting at lifting the ban on the PWG to create a conducive atmosphere for talks.

Apart from shift in policies, the two leaders also offer contrasting styles of functioning.

While Naidu had cultivated a pro-industry and pro-reform image for himself, Reddy is comfortable with the populist and welfare-oriented mould of politics. While Naidu was media-savvy and loved to be in the limelight, Reddy prefers to avoid spotlight to the extent possible.