SLBC tunnel tragedy: Congress government’s apathy draws flak

Former Minister G Jagadish Reddy slammed Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for his inaction, and prioritising the MLC election campaign over human lives

Hyderabad: The Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel accident, which has left eight workers trapped, continues to draw sharp criticism against the Congress government for its apathy. Former Minister G Jagadish Reddy slammed Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for his inaction, and prioritising the MLC election campaign over human lives.

“The trapped workers, who are from other States, played a crucial role in Telangana’s development. Yet, the government has failed to make any meaningful effort to rescue them,” he said, reminding that the Chief Ministers never went for MLC election campaign in the previous governments.

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The former Minster reminded how under former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao’s tenure, migrant workers were treated with dignity, irrespective of their nativity, even during the Covid-19 crisis. He condemned the Congress government’s negligence towards human lives.

“The Chief Minister has shown no humanity or sense of responsibility, while Ministers are busy with photo ops instead of saving lives. This tragedy is a direct result of the government’s failure,” he remarked.

Pointing out alleged lapses, Jagadish Reddy said improper safety measures led to the accident. He stated that the tunnel was dug without addressing seepage issues and as the issue persisted, works did not progress under the BRS regime. However, he said the current Congress government took up the works without adequate measures.

“The SLBC project itself was a political conspiracy of the then rulers in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, aimed at depriving Nalgonda of Krishna River water. Now, workers were forced to toil in pitch darkness without adequate oxygen,” he added.

The BRS MLA stated that rather than releasing the factual situation, the government is spreading false information through select leaks in the media. He said while his party was not interested in playing politics over such tragedy, the government’s apathy is condemnable. He demanded that the government deploy national and international experts to save the trapped workers.