Hyderabad: Attacking the Narenda Modi-led Centre for its ”autocratic attitude”, Telangana finance minister T. Harish Rao said that the state will be losing “deprived” of Rs. 25000 crore in the next five years, due to which the government here will have to implement a series of reforms in the power sector which are ”particularly against the interests of the farming community”.
The finance minister’s remarks against the Centre were made during his budget speech for the year 2022-23 on Monday, wherein Harish Rao also stated that the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi’s government here is ”not interested” in making farmers pay for the power that’s being provided to them. He also said that no financial assistance was given to Telangana in spite of the economic hardships that were caused due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Even in the latest Union Budget, no justice was done to Telangana. No irrigation project was given national status, no money was given to any programme. It was only sweet talk without the offer of any concrete help. Even the borrowing is now conditional,” stated Harish Rao. He pointed out states are also supposed to get 41% of the divisible pool, but that imposition of cesses, the Centre is “constantly reducing” the size of the divisible pool.
The finance minister stated that Telangana’s gross state domestic product (GSDP) has gone up to Rs 11,54,860 crores since its formation in 2014. He pointed out that during the year 2020-21, many states reported negaitve growth rates due to COVID-19, but that Telangana clocked a positive growth rate of (+) 2.2% during 2020-21.
All districts to have new medical colleges
Harish Rao also shared that chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao also decided that all the districts in the state will have government medical colleges, which would be established over the next two years. In this year the government will start new medical colleges at Asifabad, Bhupalpally, Vikarabad, Sircila, Janagaon, Kamareddy, Karimnagar and Khammam.
In 2023, more new medical colleges would be established in eight more districts of Medak, Medchal, Ranga Reddy, Mulugu, Warangal, Narayanpet, Gadwal and Yadadri. For this entire project, the state government has proposed an outlay of Rs 1000 crores.
More Basti Dawakhanas in Telangana
The finance minister also said that the Telangana government will establish 94 new Basti Dawakhanas in the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development area (HMDA). At present, 256 basti dawakhanas are functioning, wherein free medical care as well as 57 different types of tests, and free medicines are being provided to people.
