'Sangh Daksha': Unusual, not unexpected, Revanth-Modi camaraderie gets nod for pending BRS projects
There seems to be an unusual chemistry between Telangana CM Revanth Reddy and PM Narendra Modi. What’s cooking between them politically?
- Telangana
A Saye Sekhar- Updated On:2 March 2024 1:11 PM GMT
- Permission for elevated corridors of Rajiv Rahadari and Nagpur Highway were granted on March 1, 2024
- This included the future plan double-decker metro rail
- Defence land was given for completion of Skywalk at Mehdi Patnam on
- Navy Radar Centre at Vikarabad
- Jalshakti Ministry advisor Vedire Sriram gives a statement that’s tailored to suit Congress government’s convenience on Kaleshwaram project.
- Soon after the clearance of elevated corridors, Revanth announced Telangana’s joining PM Fasal Bima scheme
- Union Minister Nitin Gadkari agreed to recognise the remaining 182-km regional ring road as National Highway
- The Centre allows Telangana to raise 9,000 cr open market borrowings.
HYDERABAD: There seems to be an unusual chemistry working between Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. And, what’s cooking between them politically? There must be essentially much more than meets the eye.
While Modi has been an RSS-Jana Sangh-BJP man throughout, Revanth Reddy is a party-hopper, who began his journey in Akhil Bharatiya Vidharthi Parishad, the student wing of the RSS and moved parties to finally become a Congress Chief Minister.
What has triggered this bonhomie between the duo serving two diametrically opposite political formations?
First, let us examine what’s working for Revanth Reddy to say that there is an undeniable camaraderie between the duo.
Permission for Open Market Borrowings:
The first dole came as a Sankranti gift.
Revanth Reddy paid his first courtesy call on the Prime Minister on the Boxing Day of last year on December 26, 2023 with an appeal seeking the Centre’s clearance for open market borrowings (OMB) of Rs. 13,000 crore.
However, the Prime Minister’s office gave a New Year-cum-Sankranthi gift to Revanth Reddy Government by allowing Telangana to go for OMB of Rs. 9,000 crore. And the rest if history with regard to the borrowings.
It may be recalled that the Centre downgraded the OMB by Rs. 15,588 crore. The Union Government had said the borrowing limit for Telangana for the current fiscal was arrived at ₹57,813 crore but had been reduced to ₹42,225 crore after adjusting the overborrowing of the previous financial years amounting to ₹15,588 crore.
Though over borrowing is a ploy by the Centre, it’s actual intent was to link up the enhancement of limit granted under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act to fixing electric meters to agricultural pumpsets. Telangana has been offering 24x7 free power to agriculture sector for several years now.
KCR refused to implement these power reforms arguing that they would impose a financial burden on the farming community which is recovering from decades-long neglect under the rule of erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.
A detailed explanation for this can be found in the below link of NewsTAP.
Defence land for Mehdipatnam Skywalk
Then comes, the Defence land for completing the Mehdipatnam Skywalk
The line for the completion of the skywalk at Mehdipatnam in Hyderabad is cleared with the defence ministry agreeing to part with 3,380 square yards of its land to the HMDA following efforts by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. The Mehdipatnam skywalk works were kept in abeyance with the crucial part of the skywalk for the pedestrians falling in the Rytu Bazaar area that belonged to the Defence Ministry. Efforts of the earlier Government failed to fructify with the Centre refusing to part with that piece of land.
Also Read: Line cleared for Mehdipatnam skywalk, army agrees to give 3,380 sq yards to HMDA
Indian Navy’s Radar centre
Almost around the same time, the Defence Ministry cleared the Indian Navy’s low-frequency station in Parigi. Parigi MLA Rammohan Reddy and a team led by Navy Commander Karthik Shankar met Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy in the State Secretariat on Wednesday to discuss the modalities.
Also Read: Indian Navy’s low-frequency radar station works in Parigi to start in February
Southern RRR upgraded to National Highway
On February 20, the Chief Minister went and met Union Minister Nitin Gadkari who instantly agreed to declare the remaining 182-km southern part of the proposed Regional Ring Road (RRR) also as a National Highway.
No sooner had the meeting with Revanth Reddy ended, than the Union Minister instructed the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) officials to prepare proposals to declare the southern section of RRR as a national highway.
Also Read: Centre agrees to declare complete Regional Ring Road project as national highway
Vedire Sriram comes in 'support'
The support to Revanth Reddy comes from his most (un)expected quarters. The raging issue of Kaleshwaram project, especially the sagging of three pillars at Medigadda, became a tool for Advisor to Jalshakti Ministry Vedire Sriram, who came down to Hyderabad and made a presentation to media, in which he said that the CWC had never said that water was not available in adequate quantities at Tummidihatti, where the Dr B R Ambedkar Pranahita-Chevella Sujala Sravanthi was originally planned. KCR had had the plan revised to construct the Kaleshwarama project beginning at Medigadda due to abundant availability of water.
The CWC indeed talk about lower and unpredictable quantities of water at Tummidihatti.
For a detailed understanding, you may read: Clueless Congress: CWC did say water availability at Tummadihatti inadequate paving way for Medigadda
Then the Dame Luck in Delhi decided to smile again on Revanth Reddy. The proposals submitted by the BRS Government, which kept on following them up with the Centre for permission for skywalks through Defence lands, were dusted urgently and the permissions were granted.
And, Revanth Reddy attributes “arrogance of the previous government” as. the reason for the delay in securing clearance for defence lands to construct skywalks on Rajiv Rahadari and Nagpur Highway. The ambitious project proposed by the KCR Government also had incorporated the double-decker metro rail corridor in the same.
The files rotting in the folders of CPUs suddenly opened and moved at breakneck speed. They were cleared in a jiffy, because Revanth is “humble and not at all arrogant”.
Telangana rejoins Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (crop insurance
As a gesture of thanksgiving, Revanth Reddy, soon after the announcement of Defence clearance for skywalks came, announced on March 1 that Telangana was rejoining the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
He stated that the main objective of. The State government was to strengthen agriculture sector. “The state government adopted the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) again to safeguard the farmers from the hardships in the farming.”
The CM and PMFBY CEO and joint secretary Ritesh Chauhan held a meeting on Friday and discussed the implementation of the scheme in Telangana from 2016 and 2020 and its withdrawal till now.
So, what’s political about? There may be nothing on record. Either the CM and the PM want to prove the Latin phrase "Amicus meus, inimicus inimici mei" ("my friend, the enemy of my enemy"), or is anybody thinking of an alter ego of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
