OU students’ ‘T’ bus yatra takes off

Bus yatras seem to be the new mode for agitators and mediums to reach out to the people.

After the walkathons, political leaders from the State, including former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, undertook bus yatras.

Now, the bus mania appear to have caught up with students of Osmania University with several unions propagating Telangana State, launching a yatra from the University campus on Wednesday.

They would be highlighting their three-point charter of demands, which includes cancellation of Polavaram project, dropping the proposal to make Hyderabad a joint capital for 10 years and withdrawal of pending cases against students, who had participated in the Telangana movement.

The Telangana propanents, whose bus yatra with 100 students drawn from 13 unions began from two points simultaneously, will tour the four districts of North Telangana, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam.

Amid an atmosphere of noticeable jubilation, it was flagged off by Prof G Haragopal and the occasion was graced by G Devi Prasad, President Telangana NGO, M Vedakumar, Vice-President, Telangana Praja Front and Srikanth, President, Telangana Student Association.

In an interaction with the media, they wondered how the Congress Working Committee (CWC) had passed a resolution on Polavaram, which would displace over two lakh tribals living in Khammam district, where some villages would face the threat of total inundation.

They contended that Hyderabad should only be treated as a transit capital till a choice was made for Seemandhra region.

Most of the Union leaders lamented that students were missing out on academics because they were doing rounds of the court as cases were still pending against them. They sought immediate withdrawal of cases filed against students for participating in the Telangana movement.

The yatra will culminate with a massive rally in Khammam on Saturday.