Karnataka govt implementing all assurances, says Uttam

Hyderabad: Nalgonda MP and former TPCC president N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Wednesday asserted that the Congress government in Karnataka has been fulfilling all the promises it made to people during the Assembly elections. Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, he said senior party leader Rahul Gandhi had during the day launched the Gruha Lakshmi scheme, the fourth guarantee, wherein women who are family heads get Rs 2,000 a month. The Congress government will be giving Rs. 24,000 a year to a single family by spending about Rs. 22,000 crore every year.

He said every household in Karnataka was already getting free power up to 200 units. This guarantee was implemented at a cost of Rs. 7,000 crore. The third guarantee - the Anna Bhagya Scheme, where each family gets 20 kg rice has been implemented. The Karnataka government is spending Rs. 7,200 crore for the scheme. Reddy said nearly 3.05 crore women across Karnataka got free bus passes. The government is spending about Rs. 2,500 to provide free bus service to nearly 30% of all passengers (women).

He said the Karnataka government has already fulfilled four out of five guarantees that it made during the Assembly elections. The fifth guarantee, Yuva Nidhi, is scheduled to be launched in December. Under the scheme, graduates will get Rs. 3,000 a month, while diploma-holders will get Rs. 1,500. He said lakhs of graduates across Karnataka would benefit from the scheme. The government would spend Rs. 2,000 crore on graduates and Rs 3,600 crore on diploma-holders.

Reddy accused the BRS leaders of spreading falsehood regarding the Karnataka government and other States. He said unlike others, the party always fulfils the promises made to people.

He claimed the BRS leaders were in a state of fear and frustration following the serious anti-incumbency wave against the government. He said the party would sweep the Assembly elections and form government in the State. Reddy said that, unlike other parties, the Congress functions with total accountability and commitment towards the common man.The Old Pension Scheme was restored in HP immediately after the party came to power. The employees were demanding scrapping of CPS. The party during the Assembly elections, promised to restore OPS and did it in the first Cabinet meeting.

He said that the party would restore the OPS in Telangana after winning the Assembly elections. He said Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has been creating hype around the distribution of rice for the poor. However, he said the government was giving only 1 kg rice per person; the remaining 5 kg was being adjusted from a Central scheme launched during the Covid pandemic.

Reddy said people should know how they were duped by the TRS in the last nine years. ‘KCR was habitual in deceiving people with fake promises and false claims’. Listing out some failed promises, he said the CM cheated people on making a dalit CM, 2 BHK houses for the poor, KG to PG free education, 12% quota for Muslims and STs, 3 acre for poor dalit and ST families, unemployment allowance of Rs. 3,016 for jobless youth.

Overall, the KCR government had made 99 major promises in 2014 and 2018 elections. However, it did not fulfil even nine promises. While in Karnataka and other Congress-ruled States, every promise made to people has been fulfilled, he said.

Reddy claimed there was a serious anti-incumbency wave in Telangana; the BRS would be wiped out. He alleged that BRS MLAs have been harassing people and looting public wealth through sand, land, wine and mine mafias. ’They are still living in a world of arrogance with no service motto’.

He dismissed allegations by Minister KTR against the party as ‘completely baseless’ and said the BRS leaders were stooping to lowest level due to fear of loss.