Elect six-foot bullet Harish Rao, KCR at Siddipet BRS rally

SIDDIPET: Striking a sentimental chord with Siddipet Chief Minister and BRS President K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) called upon its people to elect ‘six feet bullet’ T Harish Rao one more time with the highest majority from Siddipet Assembly constituency.

Addressing a massive ‘Siddipet pragati Praja aseervada sabha’ in Siddipet on Tuesday, KCR recalled how the town groomed him, taught him and made him Chief Minister of Telangana. “Lord Rama said that there is no other place like Janma Bhumi, Siddipet is my Janma Bhumi and is always in my heart,” an emotional KCR said.

“Thanks to Siddipet, today Telangana has transformed into a topmost state in the country because Siddipet made me a victor every time. I had friends in every village here I remember them by name.” KCR recalled how difficult it was to develop the drought-prone region, and said that before the Ranganayaka Sagar reservoir under the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project was built, he and his team used to travel around and help farmers to sink bores. “Out of the 100 bore wells that we tried to sink, only one or two bore wells used to be successful,” KCR said.

KCR said that the state Government’s flagship programme Mission Bhagiratha was a replica of the Siddipet drinking water scheme that he implemented when he was Siddipet MLA. Thanking the people of Siddipet he said that he was born in Chhintamadaka, close to Siddipet where he was fed breast milk by a mother belonging to the Mudiraj community.

“With the strength I gained from Siddipet, I left the ruling TDP and ventured into Telangana agitation. I was allotted the bus symbol but I romped home with 60,000 majority, laying the foundation for separate Telangana State,” KCR said adding that the people of Karimnagar, Mahabubnagar and Gajwel supported him in his endeavours.

Exuding confidence that Kamareddy would also accord him victory in the ensuing elections, KCR said that he would follow the lucky tradition of offering prayers at the Konaipalli Venkateswara Swamy temple near Siddipet before filing nominations.

Calling upon the people of Siddipet to elect ‘six feet bullet’ T Harish Rao one more time with a thumping majority, he said that Harish left no stone unturned to develop Siddipet. “He wants everything under the sky for you. Even when I was MLA I could not do this much for the region,” KCR said.

Recalling how the ‘Dalit Bandhu’ programme evolved, he said that he helped a Dalit woman at Mittapalli to purchase an Atlas cycle for Rs 1,900 as a gift to her would-be son-in-law. They waited for me all day and when I returned they asked me to do pooja to the cycle and the mother, daughter, and son-in-law rode the cycle back home. “I never forget that scene. After becoming Chief Minister, I drafted the Dalit Bandhu scheme and I will implement it in a phased manner. Similarly, assistance to weavers will also continue,” he said.

‘Drought’ is not a word in the Siddipet dictionary: Harish

Finance and Health Minister T Harish Rao said that the Siddipet public meeting would further empower Chief Minister KCR. “This is not like a political campaign meeting, it is a thanksgiving meeting to strengthen the hands of KCR,” he said.

Recalling that a decade ago, Siddipet was a synonym for drought. He said that under the rule of KCR, the region had Godavari water and train connectivity and drinking water for every household. “Today we have all three. That is why once former President of India Pranab Mukherjee said that only few will have a chance to dream and also see it in reality,” Harish said.

Harish Rao said that the State Government spent Rs 630 crore laying a railway line to Siddipet. “We completed the Kaleshwaram project in just three years when I was Irrigation Minister. Today Telangana has become a grain bank for the whole country,” he said thanking KCR for his vision.

‘I am contesting from Siddipet again and I want you to elect me so that I can do more for my constituency,” Harish Rao said.