LoC comes up in AP, Telangana secretariat

Hyderabad : A sense of division is complete with the Secretariat, the seat of power, having barricades right in the middle of the sprawling complex. The physical division has resulted in two halves, each representing Telangana and residuary Andhra Pradesh.

The barricading has been done in such a manner that no one from either side can enter the other part. Andhra Pradesh Secretariat employees criticized this move while Telangana employees welcomed it with some reservations.

However, both the governments have feigned ignorance about the erection of barricades. The Secretariat employees were surprised to see the barricades, which came up overnight.

Telangana employees entering Secretariat from Hussainsagar side were put to inconvenience due to the blockades as they had to park their vehicles in AP Secretariat area and reach their respective offices crossing the barricades. Andhra Pradesh employees expressed anger over the haste with which the erection work was done.

General Administration Department section officer Satya Sulochana said that the government had acted in unnecessary hurry in putting up the barricades. 'Earlier we were told that namesake barricading like placing the flower parts on the dividing line would come up.

However, today we found strong barricades. I do not know why this step was taken,' Sulochana said. She said that the employees of both the Secretariats had to visit two offices since the transfer of files was still going on and employees were changing their work places.

Secretariat Seemandhra Employees Forum leader T Venkata Subbaiah said that there was no problem even if barricades were not there till Saturday.

He said that the barricades would certainly create some problems, Subbaiah said adding that the barricading further deepened the emotional divide on both sides.

Meanwhile, sources said that the decision to erect barricades was taken by the Governor. The intelligence sleuths had reported to Raj Bhavan that there would be problems if employees of both sides were allowed a free movement. Some skirmishes had taken place during the felicitation of AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu recently.

Secretariat security staff said that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao also endorsed the idea of barricades since the problem of vehicle parking had cropped up.

The existing space in Telangana Secretariat area was not enough to accommodate the vehicles and it would not be possible to allow vehicles coming for AP Secretariat to park here. This had also prompted the Chief Minister to consider barricading as a viable option.