BRS propaganda will fall flat as people enjoy the welfare schemes: Bhatti

Telangana Deputy CM discusses state's financial challenges, welfare schemes, and energy policies in an exclusive interview with The Hindu.

Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka said the enormity of the debts accrued by Telangana during the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) rule can be gauged from the fact that the Congress government was paying ₹65,000 crore per year as interest and principal on the loans taken by the BRS.

Majority of the State revenue is eaten by repayment loans yet the Congress government, following some serious financial discipline, is able to launch several welfare programmes as promised, he said speaking to The Hindu ahead of the launch of four schemes on Republic Day.

On the massive response at the Gram Sabhas to identify the beneficiaries for the Indiramma houses and ration cards, he said it reflected the 10-year rule of the BRS where people didn’t get houses or ration cards. “So, obviously there will be a lot of demand and the rush,” he said assuring that genuine people will not be left out.

Accusing the BRS of creating trouble at a few sabhas to defame the government through its social media handles, Mr. Vikramarka questioned the moral right of T. Harish Rao and K.T. Rama Rao criticising the Congress on these two schemes. “They rode to power twice with the flagship programme of Double Bedroom Houses and for 10 years nothing was done. Issuing ration cards was kept in limbo for 10 years and now they have the gumption to raise these issues,” he lamented.

As promised the Congress government will construct 4.5 lakh Indiramma houses spending ₹22,500 crore this year. The propaganda of the BJP and the BRS will be shattered once people start receiving the benefits, he said claiming that the Congress is poor in promoting its achievements unlike the BRS and the BJP.

The Deputy CM said the baseless accusations of BRS on Rythu Bharosa will fall flat as genuine farmers will get ₹12,000 per acre under the scheme. “All the cultivable lands without any ceiling on the acreage will receive it. But lands used for real estate and commercial activity will be excluded as we don’t want to waste public money like the BRS.”

Mr. Vikramarka, who is also the Energy Minister, rued the ‘power policy paralysis’ during the BRS rule. There was no policy to exploit the tremendous potential of unconventional energy as the previous government just focused on buying power at exorbitant rates. “Now we have come out with the Clean and Green Energy policy that is being appreciated as futuristic. It will attract investments of over ₹1 lakh crore.”