District Collector D. Krishna Bhaskar says he accords priority to land acquisition for pending irrigation projects and transform the newly-formed upland district on the agriculture front by making it drought-free. He also says he would take measures for the welfare of powerloom weavers of Sircilla textile town. The 2012-batch IAS officer who has earlier worked as Sub-Collector in Jagtial and Commissioner of Municipal Corporation of Karimnagar, has won accolades for his simplicity and redressal of public grievances. Excerpts from the interview:
What will be your priority for development in the newly-formed Rajanna-Sircilla district?
Land acquisition tops the list for pending irrigation projects- prominent among them being the Mid Manair reservoir, Sripada Yellampally project and Kaleshwaram project. Second comes the welfare of weavers in both the town as well as the textile park. Specific schemes have been brought out by the government for their welfare.
How will you tackle the crisis in Sircilla textile industry?
This is the issue to be addressed immediately as far as the powerlooms in the district are concerned. The existing powerlooms in the Sircilla town are outdated and they have to be replaced with the new ones to produce good fabric. Besides, wages being given to the weavers is less. Given the history of suicides in this town, a counselling centre has been established. Major issues that I am concerned with are: There are three broad tiers of weavers in the traditional powerloom units. The investor (Yajamani), operator/middleman (Asami), and the worker(Karmikudu). It’s alleged that any government intervention – like power subsidy or input subsidy – percolates down in an extremely diluted fashion. The main beneficiaries, according to what has been heard on the street, are the original investors and the Asamis and this is leading to discontent among the workers.
What measures will you take to ensure complete functioning of the textile park to benefit the powerloom weavers?
Power subsidy hasn’t been paid yet and this was the most persistent demand from both small and large owners. The total amount of Rs. 8.86 crore has not been released, and only Rs. 7.19 crore was released in its place through GO 146 in 2015. The balance Rs. 1.67 crore was supposed to be adjusted with the electricity dues for CESS being operated in Sircilla. However, this has not been done yet. Owing to this, there is a friction between the CESS and the textile park owners every month. The intervention that is possible from the government would be to follow up the payment as fast as possible. In the same area, the owners also want power tariff rates to be structured on the lines of Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu States.
Do you have any plans of implementing Tirupur model of Tamil Nadu in Sircilla town?
We will study the model first and take whatever measure is deemed necessary and feasible.
How will you develop Sri Rajeshwara Swamy Devasthanam in Vemulawada?
We will first conduct a detailed survey and finish the process of land acquisition from our side. There is a detailed plan that touches on a number of aspects - crucial of them being the proposed Master Plan with the gudi cheruvu (temple tank) as a prominent feature. There are also plans for additional features that would bridge the gap between aesthetics and piety - like Chandrasekhara Mandapam, Raja Gopuram, Yagashala and amphitheatre. This is a priority project and we will do our best to speed up construction.
How do you feel working in a smaller district?
It’s a challenge and an opportunity to work in a smaller district. I would like to say on record that the work in a smaller district is not, by any means, less. Owing to easy accessibility of officials, the responsibility and accountability has increased manifold.
Do you have any problems in the new district in terms of allocation of staff and infrastructure?
There are some teething problems in all the areas mentioned above, but we are in regular touch with the State administration and have apprised them of our needs. We expect to have most issues ironed out in about a month’s time.
