Hyderabad: On the eve of TPCC chief A Revanth Reddy becoming Telangana’s next chief minister on December 7, fencing near Pragathi Bhavan was taken down by GHMC authorities using bulldozers.
The Iron barricades in front of Pragathi Bhavan were removed for access to the public and also to ease traffic movement.
Mulugu MLA Danasari Seethakka in a post on X said that the shed and grills at Pragathi Bavan were removed by GHMC staff with the hashtag ‘#TelanganaCM’.
This comes in tune with Revanth’s promise to throw the gates of the chief minister’s residence open to the public.
“The gates of Pragathi Bhavan (CM’s residence) will be thrown open to the public. It will be renamed as Dr BR Ambedkar Praja Bhavan,” Revanth had said.
Expenditure on Pragathi Bhavan at Rs 50 cr by 2022: RTI
The total expenditure for the construction of Pragathi Bhavan is almost Rs 50 crores, an RTI response revealed in 2022. The Pragathi Bhavan, located in Begumpet, is the official residence of the state chief minister.
In a response to a Right to Information (RTI) query filed by Hyderabad-based activist Robin Zaccheus, the public relations officer of the roads and buildings department of the Telangana government stated that the total expenditure on Pragathi Bhavan, since its construction, adds up to a total of Rs 49,84,14,145.
Chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had the building built in the heart of the city in 2016. It was built after demolishing 10 IAS Officers’ quarters and 24 peon quarters at the officers’ colony. The complex, built over nine acres of land, cost Rs 45,91,00,000 during the financial year 2016-2017.
Pragathi Bhavan is the collection of five buildings- the residence, the chief minister’s office, Janahitha (meeting hall), the old CM residence, and the camp office.
It racked up another four crores in expenditure in the following four years. Some of the expenses involve services of plumbers and carpenters at camp office at a cost of Rs 14 lakhs, construction of a patrolling path on the east side of the building for Rs 26 lakhs and building of a modular kitchen at the chief minister’s residence at the cost of Rs 26 lakhs.
Revanth to take oath as CM
A Revanth Reddy is all set to take the oath as the chief minister of Telangana. Ahead of his swearing-in ceremony, he extended an invitation to the people of the state to attend the ceremony at LB Stadium.
Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony which is scheduled to be held at LB Stadium at 1:04 pm today, celebrations began at the venue.
This morning, top Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra arrived in Hyderabad to attend Revanth Reddy’s swearing-in as the Chief Minister of Telangana.
Reddy welcomed the Gandhi family at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.
