Centre refuses turmeric board and rail coach factory in Telangana

Telangana government has been making several requests to the union government to set up a turmeric board at Nizamabad and Rail Coach factory at Kazipet

Hyderabad: The BJP government at the Centre continues to reject Telangana’s appeal for a turmeric board and rail coach factory in the State.

The State government has been making several requests to the union government to set up a turmeric board at Nizamabad and Rail Coach factory at Kazipet. The BRS MPs raised questions in this regard in Lok Sabha.

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On Wednesday, BRS MPs, Venkatesh Netha, P Dayakar, G Ranjith Reddy and Malothu Kavitha raised a question in Lok Sabha on the constraints being faced by union government in setting up a Turmeric Board at Nizamabad.

The union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel said the Spices Board, a statutory autonomous body, set up under the Spices Board Act, 1986, was entrusted with the responsibility of promoting 52 spices, including turmeric, coriander and chilies.

There is, therefore, no proposal under consideration to establish a turmeric board or any other spice specific board in the country, she added.

It may be recalled that BJP MP from Nizamabad D Aravind during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections had promised the voters that he would prevail upon the union government to set up a turmeric board in Nizamabad.

Similarly, union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw categorically said there was no proposal to set up a rail coach factory in Telangana.

In reply to a question by BRS MP Nama Nageswara Rao in Lok Sabha on whether union government has any plan to sanction a railway coach factory to Telangana as assured in AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, the union Minister said there was no proposal under consideration for setting up of a rail coach factory in Telangana.

Rail coach factories are sanctioned in Indian Railways based on the requirement of the rolling stocks. Factories already sanctioned are sufficient enough to meet Indian Railways requirement of rolling stocks in the near future, he added.