A major stumbling block in the way of Andhra Pradesh employees shifting from Telangana was removed on Friday with President Pranab Mukherjee giving his nod to conferring local status to the children of Government employees who relocate there before June 2, 2017.
Mukherjee signed the file on Friday paving the way for the Union Government to immediately issue a Gazette Notification in this regard. With this the employees will be able to get local status to their children in the district of their choice in Andhra Pradesh.
Such a presidential nod and the Gazette Notification had become necessary as in 1975 President had issued an order giving local status to the people in different regions of then undivided Andhra Pradesh. Under this order issued 32nd constitutional amendments people of one region could not have claimed local status in another, ensuring equal opportunities to all the people in education and Government jobs.
local status had become a big issue for the Government employees of Andhra Pradesh origin but who worked so far in Telangana. Following the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, even the employees who were allocated to reorganised AP State were reluctant to move as without local status to their children they would have faced serious problems in future in matters of higher education and Government jobs.
To overcome this problem the State Government had raised this issue with the Union Government soon after the bifurcation in June 2014. Based on the representation from the AP Government center had written to the President seeking his approval.
Presidential approval and the Center’s Gazette Notification was likely to end the dilemma before the AP government employees.
The development has come at a time when Chandrababu Naidu government was trying its best to persuade the AP employees to move their base to the temporary capital Vijayawada and new developing capital Amaravati.
The government has already issued orders that AP employees working from Hyderabad should shift to their home state by June 27. Chief Minister Naidu has announced several sops for the employees willing to shift including five-days week and two days weekend holiday to enable them to visit their families if they remain in Hyderabad.
Meanwhile, the Heads of Departments of Andhra Pradesh have sought extension of six months for shifting from Hyderabad to Vijayawada but the Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu rejected their demand.
A delegation of Gazetted Officers Forum met Naidu on Friday and sought more time but the Chief Minister made it clear that all the employees will have to shift to AP capital by June 27. Naidu also expressed unhappiness over some of the AP employees union leaders meeting the BJP leader Purandeswari to seek her help in delaying their shifting.