Andhra Pradesh

After backlash, Jagan reverses decision to rename Kalam award after YSR

Jaganmohan Reddy has reversed the decision of the School Education department to rename the APJ Abdul Kalam Pratibha Puraskhar Award as YSR Vidya Puraskars. The awards are given to meritorious students who excel in the SSC public exams. They are given merit certificates, a memento and scholarships to meet the cost of their higher education.  

Also read : When Kalam made way for YSR

This followed an uproar over social media with several people, especially from the opposition TDP, BJP and Jana Sena slamming the move. Jagan has now said that awards should also be instituted in the name of Mahatma Gandhi, BR Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram.

This is the second time the Jagan government is landing with egg on its face, thanks to overzealous officials keen to please the CM and follow all instructions issued from Amaravati without looking at the ground situation.

Last month, the panchayat secretary in Tamedapalli in Anantapur district repainted the village secretariat wall in YSRCP colours without bothering about the fact that unlike other buildings, this one had the tricolour painted on the wall (pic above). The move to replace the tricolour with YSRCP colours came in for much criticism. After the backlash, the wall was repainted once again.

Read : The whitewash job in Andhra Pradesh

Even in this case, officials clearly took a cue from Jagan’s enthusiasm in renaming schemes after YSR and thought doing so would endear them to the CM. What they failed to realise is that removing Abdul Kalam’s name from an award associated with education and children, was a blunder.

But even the reversal has caused mirth and ridicule because Jagan’s government in the last five months has come to be associated with reversing just about every decision taken by the previous TDP regime

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