Revanth Reddy counters PM Modi's criticism, outlines Telangana govt's initiatives

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Saturday issued a response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating he was pleased to clarify "misconceptions and factual errors" and shared the initiatives implemented by the Congress government since it took office in December last year.

Reddy underlined the optimism felt across Telangana following the Congress victory. The Telangana CM said, "A wave of joy and hope has swept the state, after a near- decade of BRS misrule." Within just two days of taking office, he noted, the Congress- government had already started delivering on its key promises.

"The government of Telangana unveiled the delivery of its first and second promises--free bus travel for women across all TGSRTC buses, and healthcare & hospitalisation cover of Rs 10 lakh under Rajiv Arogyasree," Reddy said.

He further shared that in the past 11 months, Telangana's women had made 101 crore free bus trips, saving Rs 3,433 crore collectively. The CM also stressed Telangana's farmer-centric policies. He explained that Telangana now has India's largest state-level farm loan waiver program, benefitting over 22 lakh farmers, with loans of up to Rs 2 lakh waived. "We have put over Rs 18,000 crore into farmers' accounts in 25 days," Reddy added while also asserting that the state is upholding the principle "Rythe Raju" (Farmer is King).

Reddy outlined several other measures aimed at empowering women, noting that they recei free electricity for up to 200 units and gas cylinders for Rs 500, significantly less than the rates in BJP-ruled states. According to Reddy, "Over 1.31 crore gas cylinder refills have been provided, bringing relief to 42,90,246 families."

In education and employment, the CM highlighted efforts to provide jobs and boost resources for students. "After over a decade of failed exams and government job recruitment, the Congress government has done the highest recruitment drive," said Reddy while also stating, "In less than 11 months, we have provided jobs for over 50,000 eligible youth."

He also pointed out increased allocations by over 40 percent for food and hygiene products for students in welfare hostels. The government's environmental initiatives also received attention in his statement. Reddy shared efforts to clean and restore the Musi River, lakes, and other water bodies that he said had suffered from years of neglect. "Not a single inch of lake has been encroached upon since Congress came to power," he claimed.

Reddy then declared, "Telangana is now rising" under his administration in contrast to what he deemed as "an air of gloom & despair" under BRS. Reddy's response was a reply to Modi's recent thread of tweets, in which the Prime Minister accused Congress of making empty promises during election campaigns.

In his tweet, PM Modi claimed, "The Congress Party is realizing the hard way that making unreal promises is easy, but implementing them properly is tough or impossible. Campaign after campaign, they promise things to the people, which the also know they will never be ab to deliver" Modi cited issues in Congress-ruled states, mentioning that the "developmental trajectory and fiscal health is turning from bad to worse" in Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, and Telangana.

He alleged that Congress's unfulfilled promises were misleading the poor, youth, farmers, and women and that existing welfare schemes were being neglected. Modi urged the public to be vigilant against what he termed the "Congress-sponsored culture of fake promises" and cited Haryana's recent election results as evidence of people rejecting Congress.