Nalgonda: Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Along with Health Minister Damodara Rajanarsimha, Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and Agriculture Minister Raghunathapuram in Khammam on Thursday.
Addressing a public meeting, he said those who lost power and now reside in luxury farmhouses are making baseless remarks against the Congress, which has introduced Praja palana for people’s welfare. Unlike the previous BRS regime that served the elite, the Congress government is committed to public welfare, he asserted.
Bhatti assured that the state remains committed to employee welfare, as reiterated by the Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy. He criticised the BRS for pushing Telangana into a Rs 7 lakh crore debt and failing to pay employees’ salaries on time. In contrast, the current government pays salaries on the first of every month and has set up a committee to address employee demands.
Despite financial constraints, welfare schemes worth Rs 60,000 to Rs 70,000 crore are being implemented without burdening the public, Bhatti said. He said the government has prioritised development and employee welfare and highlighted that 9,065 medical seats are available across 63 government and private medical colleges in the state. Since coming to power, the Congress has secured eight new colleges and is constructing permanent buildings for them.
The Deputy Chief Minister accused the previous government of neglecting the Rajiv Arogyasri scheme, leaving bills pending. These were cleared, and the coverage limit doubled from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh, benefiting 90 lakh families. He said the Congress spent Rs 11,482 crore on the medical and health Department in a year, more than double the Rs 5,959 crore spent by the BRS from 2014 to 2023. He also noted that 57,000 jobs were filled in the first year of the Congress government, with another 30,000 to be announced soon.
He also said Rs 12,500 crore will be spent under the Indira Girijana Vikasam scheme to support tribal farmers holding land under the Forest Rights Act. Free sprinklers, solar power systems and support for avocado and oil palm farming will be provided.
Health minister Damodara Rajanarsimha said super-speciality health care would be made available in government hospitals at Khammam, Warangal and Karimnagar. The aim is to provide corporate-level services free of cost. Trauma care centres will be set up along national and state highways every 35 kilometres.
He added that 7,000 nursing staff were recruited last year and another 2,322 will be hired shortly. Rajanarsimha also announced an organ retrieval centre, a regional cancer centre and a nursing college for Khammam.
