Ponnala Lakshmaiah

Shri Ponnala Lakshmaiah (15 February 1944-) was an Indian politician, and as of 2007 was the minister for information technology and communications in Andhra Pradesh,^[1] a member of the legislature assembly of Andhra Pradesh, and a Member of the All India Congress Committee.

Lakshmaiah was the son of Smt Radhamma and Shri Rama Kishtaiah. He was serving his fourth term in the Assembly from the Janagam Constituency in Warangal District. He was married to Smt Aruna Devi and had two sons.

Early life

Lakshmaiah was born in a remote village into a family with little education, and was a member of the Munnuru Kapu community, a backward class of the Telangana region. He earned a M.S Mechanical Engineering degree from the United States in the late sixties, to gain experience and to absorb the latest U.S technology, particularly in agricultural industries.

Having come in contact with the World Bank and its programmes for developing countries, he was attracted by rural development projects in India. He returned to India and worked to generate rural employment in the region of his birthplace. The first project was improvements in areas such as poultry breeding, helping employ thousands of uneducated people. He also promoted development of the dairy industr.

Political career

Lakshmaiah began working with the Congress Party in 1980. In 1985, as a mark of protest against the atrocities perpetrated by T.D.P. workers on Harijans of Karamchedu (Guntur Dist) and the indifferent attitude of the state government, he organised a public protest. In the 1992 Congress Plenary session at Tirupati, he successfully handled the foreign delegates, including prime ministers of neighboring countries.

In 1986, he launched a protest under the aegis “Samagra Pochampad Karyacharana Samithi“ and worked with District Leaders to modify the irrigation scheme to benefit the chronically drought-prone area. Prime Minister Sri P.V. Narsimha Rao laid the foundation on June 30, 1993. The project was under execution in “Jalayagnam” at a cost of Rs. 3000 crores.

As of 2007 he was focused on Major and Medium Irrigation Projects, believing that these projects, once completed, would bring lakhs of acres under cultivation.

Achievements

• Award of the Nizam’s Charitable Trust Scholarship for Meritorious Students to Study Abroad.
• National Delegate to Asia Pacific Region Countries to study new avenues and mechanisms to establish indigenous Aquaculture and instrumental in launching of the World Bank Aided Projects for Aqua Culture in Andhra Pradesh.
• Delegate to SAARC Conference on Culture at New Delhi representing the State of Andhra Pradesh.

Party activities

• 2010 to present Minister for Information Technology & Communications, Govt of Andhra Pradesh.
• 2004–10 Minister for Major & Medium Irrigation, Govt of Andhra Pradesh.
• 2006 In-charge, Chairman of the Protocol Committee of 82nd AICC Plenary Session held at Hyderabad
• 2002 Member, Public Accounts Committee, Andhra Pradesh. Member, Constituency Re-organisation (Delimitation Committee) Andhra Pradesh.
• 1999 Member, of Executive Committee, Congress Legislature Party.
• 1999 Elected as MLA from JANGAON Constituency, Warangal Dist.// Executive Member of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee.
• 1991 to Present Member, All India Congress Committee.
• 1999 Member, Pradesh Election Committee for Parliament and Assembly Elections.
• 1999 Member, Pradesh Campaign Committee.
• 1998 Incharge for Hanmakonda Parliament Elections
• 1998 Incharge of Metpally Constituency (Karimnagar Dist) for bye-elections
• 1997 District Returning Officer in-charge of Karimnagar District in connection with Organisation Elections.
• 1996 Chairman, Warangal District Campaign Committee
• 1996 Incharge of Ananthapur District to oversee the Party Activities
• 1993 Invited to interact (Lecture) with 1993 Batch of I.A.S Cadets at Lal Bahadur Shastry National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie.
• 1991 & 1992 Minister of State in the State Cabinet.
• 1991 Chairman, Foreign Delegates Committee for 79th Plenary Session at Tirupathi.
• 1989–90 Member, Pradesh Congress Committee.
• 1988–89 Vice-President, District Congress Committee, Warangal
• 1985–88 Treasurer, District Congress Committee, Warangal / Member, Senate, Kakatiya University.
• 1978–85 Worked at the grass-root level campaigning for Congress candidates for Parliament, Assembly and Local bodies.

References