Telangana seeks Centre's support to obtain UNESCO's World Heritage Site tag

Warangal: A high-level delegation led by Minister for Panchayat Raj Errabelli Dayakar Rao, which on a mission to seek the Central Government's support for obtaining UNESCO's World Heritage Site tag for the Ramappa Temple, 210 kms northeast of Hyderabad, continued its pursuance in Delhi on Thursday. The delegation which submitted a memorandum to the Union Minister of Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel on Wednesday night, met the top officials of the Union Ministry of Tourism and Archaeological Survey of India and urged them to lobby for the coveted tag. The delegation also discussed the pending projects and release of funds with the top officials.

Referring to the Ramappa and Thousand Pillars temples, the delegation urged the officials to resume the developmental works. The delegation also urged the officials to take up the development of forts and other heritage sites in the State. The other proposals included allocation of Rs 15 crore for cultural development activities in Mahbubnagar, shifting of sound and light to a vantage point on the Golconda Fort and development of museums at Karimnagar. Speaking to media persons, Errabelli said that Telangana State has a vast heritage and cultural history.

The onus is on Centre to protect it, besides promoting tourism in the region, he added. Telangana State under the leadership of K Chandrasekhar Rao is making huge strides in welfare and development path, he said. Ministers Satyavathi Rathod, V Srinivas Goud, Warangal MP Pasunuri Dayakar, Mahabubabad MP Maloth Kavitha, Rajya Sabha member Band Prakash, MLC Pochampally Srinivas Reddy and Kakatiya Heritage Trust founder M Panduranga Rao were among others present.

In another development, Minister for Panchayat Raj Errabelli Dayakar Rao has submitted three separate memorandums to the secretary to the Union Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Narendra Singh Tomar seeking more funds. Errabelli sought funds for Telangana under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), MGNREGS and Grameen Swaraj Abhiyan. "Telangana is entitled to get funds for an extent of 4,485 kms under PMGSY, however, the Centre had sanctioned funds for the 2,427 kms. Telangana is ahead of all States in implementing MGNREGS," Errabelli said.