Government will soon give details of house sites to be allotted to journalists: Ponguleti

Information and Public Relations Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy made it clear that the government would soon give details of the house sites to be allotted to journalists, as promised earlier.

In a statement here, he said the modalities were discussed with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy during his New Delhi visit and the job of identifying the land and giving a blue print was entrusted to a senior officer, who is on the job.

Mr. Reddy said that the government was committed to fulfilling the long-pending demand of journalists for house sites and is working towards a permanent solution that will ensure allotments are free from legal complications.

Mr. Reddy said that the government was taking steps to provide house sites in habitable locations where journalists could live with their families with dignity. He urged journalists who had been waiting for nearly two decades to remain patient, and a decision would come soon.

Recalling the history of the issue, Mr. Ponguleti said land was allotted during the tenure of Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in undivided Andhra Pradesh. However, the process remained stalled for a prolonged period because of a case pending in the Supreme Court.

The Minister said that the Congress government, led by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, had taken the initiative to address the long-pending demand within months of assuming office. On September 8, 2024, a programme was organised at Ravindra Bharathi in Hyderabad, during which land was handed over to the journalists’ housing society, he recalled.

However, subsequent legal complications arising in the wake of the Supreme Court’s final orders necessitated a fresh approach to resolve the issue permanently, he said.

“Our government is determined to fulfil journalists’ dream of owning a house. Journalists need not worry, as the government was moving towards an enduring and mutually acceptable solution to the housing issue”, he said.