Andhra Pradesh unhappy over railway budget

Hyderabad, July 3 : Andhra Pradesh Friday conveyed its unhappiness to Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee over the raw deal the state has received in the 2009-10 railway budget.

The Congress government in the state feels that injustice has been done to the state as the budget proposed no new projects for the state except a superfast train between Visakhaptnam and Mumbai and development of Secunderabad and Tirupati railway stations.

In Delhi, Congress MPs from Andhra Pradesh said they were not satisfied with the budget proposals for the state. A delegation of party MPs met Mamata Banerjee to bring to her notice the raw deal meted out to the state.

Sabbam Hari, one of the party MPs, said the railways minister assured them that she would take necessary steps to redress their grievances and do justice to the state.

The Congress MPs are also planning to call on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Though Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy has not reacted to the railway budget, the ruling party leaders here feel the railways minister has not done justice to the state.

Opposition parties also came down heavily on the Congress party for failing to get a fair deal for the state despite the fact that the party has sent as many as 33 Congress MPs from the state.

"The Congress played a key role in formation of the government at the centre but it failed to ensure justice for the state in the railway budget," said Praja Rajyam party president Chiranjeevi.

Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha member V. Hanumantha Rao too felt that justice had not been done to the state in sanctioning new trains and other railway projects.