Khammam: The Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao has been drawing inspiration from Dr BR Ambedkar towards the upliftment of downtrodden sections in the State, said Transport Minister, Puvvada Ajay Kumar.
The Minister unveiled a 14-foot-tall bronze statue newly installed at ZP Centre here on Wednesday marking Ambedkar’s 130th Jayanti. He said the ZP Centre was named after Ambedkar and appealed to the residents in the city to call the centre with the new name.
Speaking after offering floral tributes to Ambedkar, Ajay Kumar informed that the statue was installed replacing an old one following the requests from various Dalit organisations and followers of Bharat Ratna awardee Ambedkar.
Ambedkar was a great social reformer and jurist who fought for the welfare of suppressed classes and campaigned against social discrimination. Making collective efforts for the progress of poorer and downtrodden sections, who constitute 90 per cent of the Indian population, would be an apt tribute to him, he felt.
The State government has been implementing various development and welfare measures for the benefit of BC, SC/ST and minorities to fulfill Ambedkar’s aspirations. Towards this, the Chief Minister allotted Rs 1,000 crore in the State budget for Dalit Empowerment Scheme, Ajay Kumar said.
He also inaugurated a statue of Ambedkar at Moodubommala Centre in the city. Later at a programme organised by the social welfare department, the Minister distributed three-wheeled scooters, battery-operated wheelchairs, hearing aids and others to the beneficiaries.
Before the formation of Telangana State, the persons with disabilities (PWDs) were given a pension of Rs 500 only. The TRS government enhanced their monthly pension to Rs 3,016, the Minister said while assuring that all the eligible PWDs would be given equipment like wheelchairs and scooters.
ZP Chairman L Kamalraj, MLC B Lakshminarayana, SUDA Chairman Bachu Vijay Kumar, District Collector RV Karnan, Commissioner of Police Vishnu S Warrier, Social Welfare Officer Ch Sandhya Rani and others were present.
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