PNS|Nalgonda
The Congress Government is working sincerely to serve the people of Telangana, while former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is trying to mislead people after ruining the state during his 10 years in power, Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister Capt. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy said.
Speaking along with Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and other leaders at the foundation-laying ceremony for the additional block at the Nalgonda Collectorate on Monday, Uttam said that KCR, who ‘pushed’ Telangana into a financial crisis, is now shamelessly attacking a Congress Government which is trying hard to ‘repair’ the damage.
“KCR ‘destroyed’ Telangana in 10 years. Now he is targeting those who are trying to rebuild the state,” he said.
Uttam said the Congress Government lost nearly five to six months because of elections after coming to power, but had not wasted a single day after that.
“After taking oath as a Minister on December 7, 2023, I have not taken even a single day’s leave. We are working round the clock to serve the people,” he said.
He pointed out that the BRS government spent Rs 1.81 lakh crore on irrigation projects but failed to bring about any significant increase in the irrigated area.
“They spent Rs 27,000 crore on the Palamuru–Rangareddy Project and Rs 9,000 crore on the Sitarama Lift Irrigation Project, but not a single extra acre got water,” he said.
He said the Kaleshwaram Project, for which nearly Rs 1 lakh crore was spent, turned out to be a disaster.
“The Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages collapsed during BRS rule due to poor design, poor construction, and poor operation and maintenance. The BRS leaders were more interested in kickbacks than in serving farmers,” he said.
In contrast, Uttam said, the Congress Government is committed to completing all irrigation projects in a transparent manner.
“We are determined to complete the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) project, which was neglected by KCR and BRS for 10 years. SLBC will become a reality under the Congress Government,” he assured.
He also accused KCR of betraying Telangana’s farmers by agreeing to an unfair formula for allocating Krishna waters.
“KCR agreed to just 299 TMCs of Krishna waters during bifurcation, inflicting huge injustice on Telangana. Today, the Congress Government is trying to secure Telangana’s rightful share of Krishna waters,” he said.
Taking a swipe at KCR, Uttam said, “After losing power, KCR has not attended even a single session of the Telangana Assembly. He is afraid to face elected representatives. But he appears at public meetings like the one in Warangal to speak lies and cover up his failures.”
Highlighting the achievements of the Congress Government, Uttam said that Telangana is on track to produce the largest quantity of paddy in the country.
“In 2024-25, Telangana will produce 281 lakh tonnes of paddy, that is, 153.5 LMT in Vanakalam and 70.13 LMT during Rabi. Despite the collapse of the Kaleshwaram Barrages, we are harvesting record quantities of paddy,” he said.
He said Telangana’s free fine rice distribution scheme is receiving a great public response and called it the ‘largest’ food security programme in India’s history.
