Centre to blame for economic mess: KTR

Minister says it was trying to seek refuge in pandemic for present crisis

Hyderabad:  In a scathing attack on the BJP government at the Centre, IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao on Wednesday said the buck stops with the Union government for the financial and economic mess the country was faced with.

The Union government, the Minister said, was trying to seek refuge in the Covid-19 pandemic for the present crisis when, in fact, it was responsible for leading the economy from slowdown to lockdown due to total lack of performance in the eight quarters prior to the setting in of the pandemic in the country.

In a no-holds-barred take on the Union government’s failures during an informal conversation with the media at Telangana Bhavan, Rama Rao said the Centre alone was responsible for the current economic crisis that was heading towards a zero or even a negative GDP growth. “Passing it off as an Act of God and not releasing funds to the States is nothing but an irresponsible attitude of the Union government,” he said.

“The economy is in crisis. The Centre has let down the people of this country. They have caused severe damage to a growing economy and eventually the livelihood of people,” he said.
In sharp contrast to the Centre’s approach to the situation, the State government would not be irresponsible towards its farmers and its people, the TRS working president said, and pointed out the various initiatives it had taken despite the pandemic. He was also confident that people of the State would understand the current crisis in case there was any delay in the implementation of any promises made by the State government.

Rama Rao said the BJP leadership at the Centre had taken away seven mandals belonging to the State but made no contribution for the development of Telangana. He challenged the BJP leaders, who had been falsely claiming credit for funding the State government schemes like KCR Kits, Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bima and others, to get national project status for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme.

He recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not respond to repeated requests from the State government to release Rs 24,000 crore for Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya as per the recommendations of NITI Aayog.

Responding to the claims of BJP leaders, the Minister said the Union government did not ground any national institution. He suggested that the BJP leaders use their clout with their Central leadership and release a white paper on any additional funds sanctioned other than tax devolutions. “The State has been cooperating with the Centre in generating revenue, but there has been no reciprocation in terms of additional funds. In fact, let the four BJP MPs from the State make it public as to how much of additional funds they got for their respective Parliamentary constituencies,” he said.

The TRS working president also found fault with Union Minister G Kishan Reddy alleging that the State government had failed in controlling the spread of coronavirus and wondered if any BJP-ruled State had performed any better. He pointed out that reputed organisations like Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) and Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FTCCI) conducted a study on the performance of States in controlling Covid-19 in which Telangana was adjudged as the best-performing State.

“Kishan Reddy should clarify which State is performing better than Telangana in terms of controlling Covid-19. He also alleged that the State government had failed during the recent flash floods in Hyderabad. I wonder if he would be equally critical of the BJP government in Karnataka for the recent deluge in Bengaluru,” he said.

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