Published Sep 16, 2026 | 6:12 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 16, 2026 | 6:13 PM
KT Rama Rao delivers the Distinguished Public Lecture at OP Jindal Global University.
Synopsis: BRS working president KT Rama Rao ruled out an alliance with the BJP for the 2028 Telangana Assembly election and said the party would support delimitation if Lok Sabha seats are increased proportionately. Delivering a Distinguished Public Lecture at O.P. Jindal Global University, he also called for the adoption of AI, saying apprehensions had accompanied every major technological transition.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) on Wednesday, 16 September, ruled out an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2028 Telangana Assembly election. Separately, he said his party would support a delimitation Bill if any increase in Lok Sabha seats is made proportionately.
“There will be no alliance with the BJP,” KTR said while responding to a question from students at OP Jindal Global University, where he delivered the Distinguished Public Lecture on “Innovation in Governance: The Story of a Startup State.”
“Southern states account for 24 percent of the representation in Lok Sabha. If there is an overall increase in the number of seats proportionately, then we will have no problem supporting the delimitation bill,” he said.
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In his lecture, KTR said governance should provide certainty through basic infrastructure and reliable public services while creating ecosystems that allow innovation, entrepreneurship and new opportunities.
He spoke about Telangana’s initiatives in irrigation, agriculture, drinking water and power and described the Kaleshwaram Project as an engineering response to the historical challenge of taking Godavari water to drought-prone regions of the State.
He also cited the increase in rice production from about 44.4 lakh tonnes in 2014–15 to 168.8 lakh tonnes in 2023–24.
KTR highlighted Telangana’s innovation ecosystem, referring to T-Hub, WE-Hub, T-Works and TASK and their roles in entrepreneurship, women-led enterprises, prototyping, hardware innovation and connecting young talent with industry.
He cited Skyroot as an example of the ecosystem supporting a company’s journey from incubation and prototyping to a market-ready enterprise.
Separately, he called for the adoption of AI and said that apprehensions had accompanied every major technological transition.
“Every change in technology was questioned, same as AI. We need to adopt it and move on,” he said.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
