The Vice-President was accorded a warm and boisterous welcome upon his arrival to Hyderabad, his first official visit to any state after assuming office.
Vice-President of India M Venkaiah Naidu was accorded a warm and boisterous welcome upon his arrival at the Begumpet airport on Monday, his first official visit to any state after assuming office.
Governor E S L Narasimhan, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, union minister Bandaru Dattatreya, Deputy Chief Ministers Kadiam Srihari and Mahmood Ali, Assembly Speaker Madhusudhana Chary, Council Chairman Swamy Goud, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, police and civil officials, and prominent personalities from various fields accorded an affectionate welcome to the Vice-President.
Soon after arrival the Vice-President inspected a guard of honour and took the ceremonial salute. Later he proceeded to the place where the Governor, Chief Minister and others were waiting. He was welcomed by all the dignitaries with bouquets and shawls.
After the welcome and reception at the airport, the Vice-President drove to Raj Bhavan where a state reception was organized by the state government.
Speaking at the public felicitation ceremony, Naidu promised that despite the constitutional constraints attached to his present status he would strive for the development of both the Telugu states by pursuing resolutions to various pending issues.
The Vice-President also called upon the Chief Ministers of both the states - K Chandrashekar Rao and N Chandrababu Naidu - to work together and take the Telugu states to greater prosperity. There might be certain differences of opinion among them but they could be resolved amicably through discussions, he said.
Recalling his association with Telangana, the Vice-President said that though he was born in Nellore and studied in Vizag, his political career began and grew from Hyderabad. There is not a single mandal or taluka in the state which he had not visited, he claimed. Hyderabad was a meeting place for diverse languages, cultures and traditions, and was in fact a "Mini Bharat", he said.
Earlier Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao recalled his long acquaintance with Naidu, said that it was a great honour for the Telugu people that Telugu man was holding the nation's second highest post. Naidu was a great orator and his speeches not only in Telugu but also in English and Hindi were always tinged with wit and satire, he gushed. With his vast experience in politics and public service, he would bring laurels to the post, KCR said. He thanked the Vice-President for giving the opportunity to Telangana to be the first to accord him a civic reception after assuming office.