Uninterrupted nine-hour power supply to farming sector free of cost, a separate corpus fund to address agrarian problems, providing free laptops to thousands of top-ranking Eamcet students and bicycles to girl students from sixth standard onwards are among the promises made by Telangana BJP in its manifesto.
Highlighting the details at a media conference after the manifesto was released by former Sikkim Governor V. Rama Rao here on Friday, Telangana BJP president G. Kishan Reddy said the BJP if elected to power would focus on equal development of all the 10 districts in Telangana. Referring to five ‘T’s ( tradition, technology, tourism, trade and talent) conceived by BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi as part of promoting ‘Brand India’, he said two more ‘T’s were being added to it -- transparency and Telangana development.
Observing that there was also a need to develop Brand Hyderabad and Brand Telangana, he said the BJP while paying tributes to Telangana martyrs would build a memorial centre in their honour at Warangal. It would highlight the sacrifices made by them as also of those who fought against the autocratic rule of Nizam. Besides giving an ex-gratia of Rs.10 lakh or three acres of land or 200 square yards of housing plots to each martyr’s family, pension would be provided to their parents and thousands of cases booked against Telangana agitators would be withdrawn. The manifesto promises to waive farm loans up to Rs. 1 lakh, implement Swaminathan commission recommendations, set up a State-level agricultural prices commission to decide on market price of the produce and present separate budgets for agriculture, animal husbandry and irrigation. A committee would study the issue of providing pension and health insurance to farmers above 60 years. Efforts would be made to bring farmers and farm labourers under the National Pension Scheme.
Besides, agriculture, top priority would be given to power sector. New thermal plants of 4000 MW each would be set up at Manuguru and Bhupalpalli. Subsidy to an extent of 85 per cent would be provided for solar pumpsets.
On irrigation, the manifesto promised efforts to get national project status to Pranahita-Chevella scheme, revival of 30,000 tanks which dried up in Telangana, complete all ongoing irrigation projects in two years and construct 2000 minor irrigation tanks.
Mr. Kishan Reddy said that under ‘Pratibha Kamalam’ project, top 25,000 rank holders in the engineering stream and 500 in medicine stream would be provided free laptops. Top 2,000 girls from Eamcet and top 100 girls from MBA-CET, irrespective of their economic condition would be given Rs. 1 lakh cash award as part of promoting girl child education.
