Removing Gandhiji's name from MGNREGA an insult: Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy

Hyderabad, Dec. 18 -- Telangana Revenue, Housing and Information & Public Relations Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy on Thursday strongly condemned the Centre's move to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, calling it an insult to Mahatma Gandhi and an attack on the livelihoods of the rural poor.

In a statement, the Minister said the employment guarantee scheme, introduced by the UPA government in 2005 to support impoverished families, had become the backbone of India's rural economy.

He alleged that over the past decade the BJP government had been systematically weakening the scheme and was now attempting to erase Gandhiji's name through what he termed a shameful decision.

Reddy criticised the bill passe...