Telangana spoils new year retreat of president; she returns tomorrow

The ongoing trouble in Andhra Pradesh over the Telangana issue saw president Pratibha Patil cancelling her annual retreat to Nilayam in Hyderabad, though Rashtrapati Bhavan maintained that it had been "deferred" due to official engagements in the national capital.

The 75-year-old president was advised by security agencies not to visit Andhra Pradesh which has been witnessing widespread agitation over the issue of Telangana statehood.

Rashtrapati Bhavan officials said, "The departure of the president to Hyderabad has been deferred as she would like to be in Delhi at the time when the president's rule in Jharkhand would be revoked in view of a possible government formation in the state."

This is for the first time that Patil would be having her new year in the Rashtrapati Bhavan after taking over as the president in 2007.

Rashtrapati Nilayam (president's house) is one of the two official retreats of the president of India. It is located in a suburb called Bollarum on the outskirts of Secunderabad.

The president has been going to the place on the official retreat on the new year eve. She was supposed to arrive in Hyderabad tomorrow.