Loose ends

Centre must see the dangers of leaving the terms of Telangana creation open to prolonged wrangling.

Centre must see the dangers of leaving the terms of Telangana creation open to prolonged wrangling.

The creation of a new state inevitably brings ruptures and dislocations. But the birth of Telangana has been an especially tortuous process,stoking acrimony even four years after the division of Andhra Pradesh was first promised by the Centre. As the GoM on Telangana goes into its third meeting,it is buffeted by strident claims from all sides. This is largely because an abdicating and erratic Centre has left the terms of the new states creation open to unchecked political wrangling.

TRS chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao has written a strongly worded letter to the Union home ministry,demanding that Hyderabad be the shared capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for two years instead of ten. He has also laid claim to the oil and natural gas resources of the Krishna-Godavari basin. And resurrected an old and controversial demand that government employees from Seemandhra who hold jobs reserved for the people of Telangana be relocated. While the TRS chiefs wish-list has come in,the Centre will also have to deal with similarly unreasonable demands of other players who refuse to make their peace with the statehood decision. The TDP,as also the state outfit of the Congress,remain split down the middle.

After prolonged dithering,the Centre rushed in to create Telangana without articulating a clear rationale or working out a blueprint for implementation. It should have used the last four years to fine-tune its decision,consult with regional stakeholders,create a consensus,resolve problems of sharing and division. It didnt. It was only last month that the Union home ministry,in a note to the GoM,got down to identifying the issues that need to be addressed. These include the status of Hyderabad,law and order,the sharing of investments and natural resources,and the question of whether Article 371 D meant to ensure equitable opportunities for employment in the state should be amended or repealed. These are now the Centres problems. When the GoM meets,the Centre must begin working on a plan. Allowing the loose ends of the Telangana decision to be hijacked by partisan interests could be dangerous.