Press Releases Archive

Lok Satta welcomes 4% loans to students

The Lok Satta Party today whole-heartedly welcomed the Union Ministry for Human Resource Development plans to facilitate grant of bank loans at four percent interest to students for pursuing higher education.

The proposed policy is in tune with the Lok Satta Party’s stand that every one should be provided quality education free of cost and that no student is denied an opportunity to pursue higher education because of poverty so long as s/he is desirous and deserving.

Talking to the media, party leaders Katari Srinivasa Rao and V. Laxman Balaji recalled that the Andhra Pradesh Government has run into trouble in fulfilling its promise to reimburse tuition fee to a limited number of students. The proposed bank loan scheme will enable every deserving student to pursue higher education and it is doubly welcome in the context of foreign universities opening their campuses in India.

The Lok Satta leaders underlined that the State Government could stand guarantee for repayment of loans by students and consider even subsidizing part of interest payment, if necessary. The banks should consider the ability of the students to repay loans once they complete education and land a job and not insist on collaterals.

The proposed scheme will go a long way in building human resources in India which has a demographic advantage, said the Lok Satta leaders.

Saturday, May 15, 2010 - 20:43

Lok Satta tribute to Shekawat

The Lok Satta Party today expressed profound grief over the death of former Vice President of India Bhairon Singh Shekawat.

A self-made leader, Mr. Shekawat will go down in history for scripting the ‘Antyodaya’ scheme to provide food security to the poorest of the poor, said party leaders Katari Srinivsa Rao and V. Laxman Balaji. The pro-farmer leader played a key role in the era of coalition Governments in the country, they added.

Saturday, May 15, 2010 - 20:42

Dr. JP counsels NRIs not to lose hope Of transforming India

There are many, many leaders of impeccable integrity in all parties in India, Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan told a gathering of non-resident Indians here.

Taking part in the ‘Rejuvenate India’ program launched by People for Lok Satta, Dr. JP said said that leaders like Dr. Manmohan Singh, Mr. A. K. Antony, Mr. L. K. Advani, Mr. Narendra Modi, Mr. Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, Mr. Prakash Karat, Mr. Nitish Kumar are all honest. Yet, they have not been able to dictate the political process for reasons beyond their control.

“There is no need to turn cynical and conclude India is a gone case. Things do happen,” he said and instanced how top leaders of all parties facilitated the enactment of a law on funding of political parties.

Dr. JP said that the bane of India is that most people take the status quo for granted instead of attempting to change it. “If we only we set aside petty differences, we can resolve all problems and grow.”

The greatest hurdle to India’s transformation is the first-past-the-post electoral system, which comes in the way of people voting for the right person. The country can be transformed in no time with a switchover to the proportional representation system. The second hurdle is the reluctance of the best and the brightest to take to politics as a calling and not as a career. So long as the middle classes do not go to the polling booth, there can be no change in the country.

He pointed out that the average polling in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections was 41 percent. Assuming that 30 percent of polled votes were bought with money or liquor, the genuine voting was only 11 percent. It was a disgrace. Do people who do not go to the polling booth believe that a miracle or a baba will bring about change? “There is no wonder we get the government we deserve.”

If the Lok Satta Party had not won any seats in the GHMC, it was not its failure. It fielded good candidates at least in 70 constituencies, and mounted an impressive campaign. Yet the people were more interested in getting some candidate defeated and not in getting the right candidate elected. Earlier, the people used to complain they had to choose the lesser evil in elections as they had no choice. They had not changed their behavior although the Lok Satta provided an alternative, ethical forum.

He told the NRIs that he was determined to make Kukatpally, his Assembly constituency, a model constituency. In the last one year, works worth Rs.33 crore had been grounded. He had to bring about change without enjoying any power but with patience and persuasive skills.

Friday, May 14, 2010 - 18:07

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