Congress government under Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has been focusing on people-centric governance from the day of swearing-in ceremony on December 7, 2023.
| Photo Credit: RAMAKRISHNA G
At an impressive swearing in ceremony on December 7, 2023 at the L.B.Stadium Anumula Revanth Reddy, then 54 years, as the second Chief Minister of the State of Telangana said: “You are the partners in the State government. I promise all of you that, as your beloved leader, I will take the responsibility of the development of the welfare State by taking suggestions from all.”
A year on, Mr. Revanth Reddy in tune with his assertion that day is trying to rewrite the history of the State, with the single point agenda of ushering in what he called ‘Indiramma Rajyam’ to fulfil the aspirations of four crore Telangana people, especially farmers, students, unemployed youth, activists and families of martyrs.
Trying to bring in ‘Prajala Palana’ (People’s Governance), Mr. Reddy has set his eyes on restoring democracy, which he charged had been decimated in the last one decade because of the autocratic rule of the then BRS regime.
Bouquets and brickbats for Revanth
A look at the 12-month governance clearly shows how the Chief Minister has faced brickbats for some of his decisions and won bouquets for the manner in which the much touted six guarantees, which had announced with fanfare last year are grounded and few implemented.
Among the six guarantees, the government successfully introduced free bus travel scheme for women and the statistics show that as many as 115 crore women travelled in the buses. The free power supply up to 200 units for poor and cooking gas cylinders at ₹500 scheme has been grounded.
A shot in the arm for the Congress government is filling up of a record 55,413 vacancies after coming to power. This possibly has quelled the strong opposition from the youth and unemployed, who had agitated time and again to complete the recruitment process. Undeterred by protests by aspirants, Government went ahead and conducted Group-I mains examinations.
Farm loan waiver
By focusing on the farm sector, the government committed to its promise of farm loan waiver of up to ₹2-lakh has deposited ₹21,000 crore benefiting as many as 25.35 lakh farmers in the State. It has provided ₹500 bonus for fine variety paddy per quintal and achieved the distinction in the country by harvesting 1.53 lakh metric tonnes of paddy this year. The promise of 4.5 lakh houses for the weaker sections is also on cards as announced by the Chief Minister himself. Mr. Revanth Reddy’s pet project the Young India Skill University also received positive response with good contributions coming in from the industrialists.
To set things right, the government ordered two separate judicial probe into alleged irregularities in the damage to the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project and the Yadadri Thermal Power Station. Replacing Dharani land management system with a new ones is one step to help people.
Musi and Lagcherla fiasco
Yet, It has not been a smooth sailing for the government at least on two counts. Firstly, it miserably failed to counter the Opposition BRS and BJP campaign against Musi Rejuvenation. The BRS found an opportunity to corner the government and set up a cell to received grievances from the people likely to be displaced. Secondly, the proposed Pharma village at Lagcherla in Revanth Reddy’s Kodangal constituency was one issue which forced the government to back out. The attack on the Vikarabad Collector, the subsequent police action forced the BRS and the BJP to stand by the locals. The issue was national echo with victims approaching the rights body and other commissions in New Delhi. Facing the flak for issue, the Government announced withdrawal of the project and instead declared an industrial cluster will come up.
The much talked about demolitions carried out through the HYDRAA (Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency) initially brought the government immense appreciation. As the demolition drive to clear encroachments continued, a sense of insecurity crept in among the people, who had constructed houses with all permissions not realising that the structures were in the purview of full tank level (FTL) or buffer zone.
The High Court intervention put brakes on the efforts of HYDRAA for the time being. But, the government is determined to free the lakes of encroachments.
Finances
Faced with a mammoth task of mopping up the much needed funds to implement its ambitious promises, the government has borrowed ₹52,118 crore between December, 2023 and November, 2024. On the other hand the government repaid ₹64,516 crore towards principal and interest on previous government borrowings, which exceeds the amount borrowed. In addition to loan repayments, the government has allocated ₹24,036 crore for capital expenditure and ₹61,194 crore for various flagship schemes.
Focus on core areas
On the administration front, Congress government continues to focus on its core areas of development and welfare while on the party front, Mr. Revanth Reddy has managed to take all sections of the Congress leaders along without any dissenting voices. He has been able to maintain a cordial relationship with the party leaders and also his Cabinet colleagues. Central leadership’s praise for his work has ensured that the going is smooth. Only cause of worry for him is the proposed Cabinet expansion, which is delayed.
On the whole, the Congress government’s focus on development and welfare sector is in tune with Mr. Revanth Reddy assertion that people are partners in the State government.
Published – December 06, 2024 07:35 pm IST
