KCR pitches BRS as the game-changer for Maharashtra, kickstarts party expansion drive

NANDED: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) President and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) said on Friday in Nanded that India could not progress until change occurred.

Addressing a BRS cadre training programme in Nanded, KCR kickstarted a month-long programme aimed at expanding the party network across 45,000 villages and metropolitan civic bodies across Maharashtra.

"I congratulate my brothers and sisters in Maharashtra because the journey that we began is succeeding and this journey for development is not only for Maharashtra but for the development of the country. And our country cannot develop until we effect a change," the BRS supremo said while speaking to the party workers.

KCR said that any country that thought out of the box would succeed in becoming a developed nation. "Our experiences from the last 75 years teach us that we need to think out of the box to be a developed country. All those countries that thought outside the box were successful and the best example is our neighbour China, which went from zero to becoming the most developed nation. And we cannot fathom the world without China. Countries such as Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea worked outside the box and are today highly successful," he told the gathering.

Referring to the recent Karnataka Assembly elections, the Telangana Chief Minister felt that, more than winning the elections, it was important to win people’s confidence. "BJP lost in Karnataka and Congress won but nothing will change because winning people’s confidence is critical both before and after the elections. I can confidently state that the BRS works tirelessly to ensure that the people triumph. The BRS party succeeds because it keeps its promises and the entire country wants the Telangana model to be replicated."

Stressing on the importance of water conservation, KCR said, "Water is a very precious resource that a man cannot make, so we need to save water but nothing is being done towards this end. Aurangabad receives water once every eight days, Akola once every seven days and Sholapur once every 10 days. And this is happening despite the fact that we have plenty of water. But when is this going to change?"

KCR harped on his criticism of both the Congress and the BJP regimes at the Centre for gross neglect of basic necessities. "It is shameful to say that even after 75 years of independence, many people are still deprived of basic necessities like water and electricity. Farmers are dying but the ruling parties appear apathetic and unwilling to act. Dalits have been impoverished for generations and tribals are also impoverished, meaning that they are still suffering even after 75 years of freedom," said the Telangana Chief Minister.

"We can see the difference in states where politicians are actually working and using their brains and Telangana is one such example of development. People of the entire country are craving for the Telangana model to be implemented in their states. I am confident that the BRS will be able to overcome all of these challenges," he asserted.

The BRS Chief further said, "Telangana state, which is flourishing today, once had a lot of issues. Farmers in Telangana were dying before I became chief minister but within seven years, every house in our state had access to clean drinking water. And the Telangana model was being discussed everywhere. It is my responsibility to make Maharashtra a developed state like Telangana."

KCR launches month-long party expansion programme in Maharashtra

The BRS chief on this occasion inaugurated a month-long drive to expand his party's network in over 45,000 villages and metropolitan civic bodies across Maharashtra.

He proposed that nine committees be constituted in each location with farmers, youth, women, backward classes, tribals and minorities represented in them.

"We will go to over 45,000 villages and 5,000 municipal wards in civic bodies in Maharashtra," he announced.

KCR asked the party cadre to visit five villages in a day starting from May 22 till June. He also asked them to spend at least two hours in each village and eat with Dalits, commenting that the BRS was a poor man’s party while other parties were rich. He also distributed tabs, materials and pen-drives to the party cadre for the month-long drive across Maharashtra.

The BRS Chief also said that BRS would soon set up huge party offices in Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad and Nagpur. He added that, if a party office could not be established, free meal distribution (langars) would be organised where the party cadres might dine on a daily basis.