KCR giving coal mines to Andhra companies, alleges Bhatti

Mancherial: Senior Congress leader Bhatti Vikramarka on Tuesday warned the State government against the prisatization of Sinagreni coal mines and other assets.

"In Telangana State, where we claim our crops, forests and wealth as ours, the ploy to privatise the Singareni Collieries is underway," Bhatti Vikarmarka said, adding that Singareni employs numbering about 1.15 lakh people and nearly 60,000 jobs would be lost if Singareni gets privatised.

He said the Congress party would never allow the BRS or BJP governments to privatise Telangana's resources. He also accused Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao of handing over coal mining resources to Andhra Pradesh companies.

Bhatti Vikarmarka was addressing a corner meeting at Tandoor of Mancherial district on the 13th day of Haath Se Haath Jodo Yatra' on Tuesday. Upon entering the Mancherial district, District Congress Committee (DCC) president Kokkarala Surekamma, party leaders and a large number of supporters greeted him with traditional festivities and folk dances. Former MLC K Prem Sagar Rao, TPCC vice-president Madan Mohan Rao and other senior Congress leaders and activists attended the event.

Vikramarka criticized Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for allegedly attaining power through deception and failing to resolve any problem, arguing that only a change in government could bring about the progress the State requires.

He claimed that since Telangana's formation, the State had not advanced significantly. As an example, he mentioned the previous Congress government's distribution of 198 houses in Tandoor mandal, which continue to lack proper development and infrastructure. He also pointed out the BRS government's failure to provide a single double-bedroom house.

Bhatti said if Congress returns to power, it would take control of crops, compensate for losses caused by natural disasters, and offer land and financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh for constructing homes for the homeless. He also pledged that the next Congress government would supply gas cylinders at Rs 500 and ensure that Telangana's wealth is utilised for the benefit of all four crore people in the State.