CM Revanth during his address, sought to turn the tables against the critics who questioned Sonia Gandhi's invitation to the celebrations. She did not attend the event as she was reportedly indisposed.
CM Revanth Reddy at Telangana state formation day (X)
According an almost divine status to Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi for ceding separate Telangana state 10 years ago, Telangana Chief A Revanth Reddy said that she would remain in the hearts of people of the state as their mother who fulfilled their dream, at the decennial celebrations of Telangana State Formation Day in Hyderabad on Sunday, 2 June.
The chief minister, after paying floral tributes to those who laid down their lives for the Telangana state, at the Martyrs Memorial at Gun Park in Hyderabad, arrived at Parade Grounds in Secunderabad.
There he unveiled the state anthem “Jaya Jayahe Telangana”, penned by Dalit poet Ande Sri, for which Oscar-fame music director MM Keeravani composed the music.
As the song was being played, tears welled in Ande Sri’s eyes, as the turbulent days of Telangana movement had probably flashed through his mind.
After unfurling the national flag as a mark of commencement of the decennial celebrations of Telangana Formation day, the chief minister addressed the gathering in which he covered a wide gamut of issues, past, present and future.
He also shared his vision for tomorrow’s green Telangana, which he said should set an example for the entire world.
In the initial part of his address, CM Revanth Reddy dwelt mostly on Sonia Gandhi’s resolve that made the dream of the people of Telangana come true.
He sought to turn the tables against the critics who questioned Gandhi’s invitation to the celebrations. She did not attend the event as she was reportedly indisposed.
He asked, “Does a mother need permission to visit her child’s home? We recognized Mahatma Gandhi as the father of the nation but did he have any official position? As long as Telangana exists, Sonia Gandhi will be considered the mother by Telangana society. She shares a strong bond with them, like a mother does with her child.”
A video message of Sonia Gandhi was played at the venue in which she greeted people on the occasion of the state formation day. The chief minister, in his address, referred to Gandhi several times as the great benefactor of Telangana.
This was apparently in response to former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s comment that it was very indecorous to edify someone, who threw Telangana as a bread crumb at people while ignoring their struggles and sacrifices.
He also thanked former Lok Sabha speaker Meera Kumar, daughter of former Dalit Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram, for passing the Andhra Pradesh State Reorganization Bill, 2014 and BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, for lending support to the passage of the bill in her capacity as Opposition leader.
The chief minister, took potshots at the previous BRS government, albeit obliquely, saying that the people were celebrating the Telangana formation day now in its real sense as there was now no repression and no clamp down on their rights or muzzling of the voices of dissidents.
He said, “Freedom is part of the Telangana’s way of life. It has never tolerated bondage. We always questioned domination. We can endure hunger but not lack of freedom.”
Quoting poet Kaloji Narayana Rao, the chief minister said, “We drive away those from outside who harm our interests. If our own does it, we will bury them.” He said on the contrary, his government valued suggestions from all others.
“We do not live in delusions of grandeur and that we are all-knowing,” he said, apparently keeping KCR in mind. He also recalled how the previous government had caused 100 years of destruction in the state in just a span of 10 years and how the present government was rebuilding the state.
He said that as soon as he became the chief minister on 7 December, 2023, his first priority was restoring freedom.
“Barbed fences and iron grills, which symbolized dictatorship have been removed. We have demolished the wall between the rulers and the ruled. We have brought a regime that is responsible and accessible to the people. Pragati Bhavan has been renamed Mahatma Jyoti Rao Phule Praja Bhavan, and its doors have been opened to the public, ” CM Revanth said.
He said it was unfortunate that during the 10 years of rule by erstwhile government, there was an assault on freedom. Social justice was denied and the wealth of the state, which should belong to all the people, has gone into the hands of a few, he said.
Telangana culture and traditions were destroyed, CM Revanth further said, adding that today, the Telangana government is elected by the people and it reflects their aspirations.
The chief minister said that the culture is the identity for any race or community and that it is the responsibility of governments to protect that culture.
“Our culture and history is rich from Bonam to Bathukamma and from armed struggle to statehood movement. From Sammakka Saralamma to Jogulamba, from Bhadradri lord Sitarama to Komuram Bheem, Telangana has a rich historical heritage with martyrs’ sacrifices and rights movements. This culture and history should be revived,” he said.
The chief minister, referring to the need to change the design of state emblem, said the government was working on creating a new one taking into consideration the suggestions from various quarters.
“The people’s government already decided to use TG as prefix in vehicle registration and while representing the state. During the Telangana movement, people wanted to use TG as the acronym for the state. Several youths had also tattooed the letters TG on their hearts, ” CM Revanth said.
“Respecting their aspirations and wishes, the people’s government changed TS to TG,” he said, adding that a new design was being developed for Telangana Thalli statue. It should be a replica of an ordinary Telangana rural woman, who works hard and is always generous,” he said.
Referring to the economic issues that are facing the state, he said priority would be given for the revival of the state economy.
“The state economy has been destroyed by the previous government. When we took over, the debt burden on the state was ₹7 lakh crore. We presented a white paper in the Assembly and explained the facts to the people,” CM Revanth said.
“Besides strengthening the economic condition, the government will also give priority to welfare and development of the state. We are giving salaries to government employees and pensioners on the first day of every month,” he pointed out.
He said that his government was laying a strong foundation by conceiving long term plans for future generations.
“We are preparing the “Green Telangana – 2050 Master Plan” for the entire Telangana. We are dividing the state into three zones. The area within Hyderabad Outer Ring Road (ORR) is Urban Telangana and the area between Outer Ring Road and Regional Ring Road (RRR) will be Sub Urban Telangana,” the chief minister said.
“Rural Telangana is defined as the area from the Regional Ring Road to the borders of Telangana state. Under the mega plan, the government will clearly announce where the development should take place in the three zones and what kind of infrastructure should be built,” he said.
The CM also referred to the Musi River Front project for beautification and employment generation with an investment of ₹1000 crore, metro-rail expansion in Hyderabad, efforts for early completion of the regional ring road and measures to curb the drug menace.
He did not miss out on the all-important issue of deciding the rightful share of Telangana in Krishna and Godavari waters and regretted that it remained unresolved even after 10 years.
“We will bring pressure on the centre to resolve the issue. From today, Hyderabad ceases to be joint capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. We will resolve the issues related to division of assets between the two states at the earliest,” the chief minister said.
(Edited by Shauqueen Mizaj)
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