Hyderabad: Telangana Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Kalvakuntla Kavitha said on Tuesday that welfare schemes for poor people are not ‘freebies,’ and waiving loans of “dupe agencies” are actual freebies.
“In Telangana, we have around 250 welfare schemes that are being run for poor people. It is our responsibility as a state government to keep the best interests of the poor in mind,” she said.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a comment denouncing politicians who collected votes by distributing ‘freebies’.
Remarking that there is a trend across the nation terming welfare schemes as ‘freebies,’ Kavitha said that the centre is putting pressure on the state govt to stop these schemes.
“We’re very against this behaviour. The welfare of poor people is the responsibility of any government. I believe a ‘freebie’ is what the BJP government has done- writing off a 10 lakh crore debt of dupe agencies,” she said.
The ex-MP said, “The welfare of weaker societies is never a freebie, it is our social responsibility. I request the intelligentsia of the country to rise to the occasion and oppose this atmosphere that is being generated in the country today,” she expressed.
“India is such a diverse country with people from all backgrounds. It is the government’s responsibility to help the weaker communities to break the cycle of poverty and progress. State governments should work towards it and Central govt should not put any hindrances in that,” she added.
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