Telangana CM meets PM, seeks pending funds, coal blocks for SCCL
Hyderabad, July 4 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) Telangana Chief Minister, A Revanth Reddy on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and urged the Centre to release pending funds, allot coal blocks for public sector miner Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) and also fulfil the commitments under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act. Accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, the Chief Minister called on PM Modi and submitted a memorandum on 12 issues to him. According to the Chief Minister’s Office, various issues pertaining to the state were discussed during the hour-long meeting. CM Revanth Reddy also requested the Prime Minister to order transfer of 2,450 acres of Defence lands to the state government for various infrastructure projects. The state government also sought revival of the Information Technology and Investment Region (ITIR) project, which was sanctioned for Hyderabad by the earlier Congress-led UPA government. The Chief Minister urged the Centre to sanction 25 lakh houses for the state. CM Reddy demanded that the Centre allot coal blocks under Singareni coalfield area to the company. The Centre was urged to remove such blocks from the list of coal blocks put for auction by the Ministry of Coal. CM Reddy mentioned that Telangana has 51 per cent share in SCCL while the remaining 49 per cent is held by the Central government. The Prime Minister was urged to remove Sravanapalli mine from the coal blocks put for auction. The state government also sought allotment of Koyagudem and Sattupalli block 3 for SCCL, saying this is crucial to meet the coal requirements of power plants in Telangana. The Prime Minister was informed that in 2010 the then UPA government had sanctioned ITIRs for Hyderabad and Bengaluru. To encourage new IT companies and developers, the Telangana government had identified lands for three clusters. However, the ITIR project made no progress after 2014. CM Reddy urged the Prime Minister to revive the same. CM Reddy also brought to PM Modi’s notice that though the Centre had decided in principle to set up an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in every state, Telangana had not yet been sanctioned an IIM. Demanding immediate sanction of IIM for Hyderabad, he said there was land available in Hyderabad Central University. He also conveyed that the state government was ready to allot alternate land if needed. CM Reddy reminded PM Modi that at the time of reorganisation of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana was promised a railway coach factory at Kazipet. However, in July 2023 the Railway Ministry announced that in place of the coach factory, it would set up a periodical overhauling workshop at Kazipet. He said it was not proper on part of the Railway Ministry to announce that a railway factory in Kazipet was not possible while it sanctioned coach factories for other parts of the country. CM Reddy also requested the Prime Minister to include Telangana in the India Semiconductor Mission. He mentioned that some companies have evinced interest in setting up semiconductor fabs in Hyderabad. The Chief Minister also brought to the Prime Minister’s notice that Telangana was sanctioned fewer houses under the Prime Minister Awas Yojana. As the Central government has set a target of 3 crore houses under PMAY starting from 2024-25, Telangana may be sanctioned 25 lakh houses, he requested. The Prime Minister was also requested to release arrears of Rs.1,800 crore to Telangana under Backward Regions Grant Fund for the years from 2019-20 to 2023-34. CM Reddy also sought transfer of Defence land in Hyderabad to the state government for elevated corridors on Hyderabad-Karimnagar and Hyderabad-Nagpur highways. He also sought transfer of another 2,450 acres of Defence land for widening of roads and other infrastructure projects in Hyderabad. CM Reddy conveyed to PM Modi that in lieu of these Defence lands, the state government is ready to transfer to the Centre 2,462 acres of land given on lease for Research Centre Imarat (RCI) at Ravirala. The Chief Minister urged the Centre to expedite setting up of Bayyaram Steel Plant as promised under the Reorganisation Act. The state government also requested the Centre to initiate the tender process for the Hyderabad Regional Ring Road (RRR north), which was already approved under Bharatmala Pariyojana’s first phase. It demanded that RRR (south) be declared a national highway and approved under Bharatmala Pariyojana. The Prime Minister was urged to upgrade 13 state highways as national highways given the increased transport demand to important towns and pilgrimage centres. –
