Congress party will introduce changes in the present Rythu Bandhu scheme eliminating the real estate dealers in and around the cities but claiming the benefits under the scheme, and passing on the same benefit to the farmers as per the party’s promise of enhanced ₹15,000 per acre per annum under the Indira Rythu Bharosa scheme.
The TPCC president, A. Revanth Reddy said that thousands of real estate dealers with huge land holdings were claiming the benefit under the Rythu Bandhu scheme thanks to Chief Minister, K. Chandrashekar Rao’s ‘sinister plan’ to pass on the monetary benefit to his near and dear ones.
“The proposed Indira Rythu Bharosa will see that money saved by denying the benefit to the real estate dealers will be passed onto the genuine farmers as soon as the party comes to power,” he said at a programme organised by Telangana Journalists’ Study Forum on the ‘Warangal Declaration’ for the farmers. “It would be a win-win situation for the genuine farmers and the government.”
He said a ₹2 lakh farm loan waiver would be done within 30 days of the party coming to power and the constitution of a Farmers’ Commission on the lines of the SC Commission where farmers can redress their grievances if the system denies them the benefits.
On farmers believing the Congress, he said farmers would believe because the Congress has the history of honouring its promises like waiving farm loans, providing free electricity, distributing lands to the poor, free treatment under Arogyasri and fee reimbursement scheme at all levels.
Mr. Rahul Gandhi has made a promise to the people and like his mother who kept the promise of giving a separate Telangana he too would ensure that all the nine promises made to the farmers will be fulfilled. He reminded the voters that it was Congress that constructed 81 irrigation projects in the combined Andhra Pradesh and no one needs to teach Congress on taking care of farmers.
The Telangana Congress chief accused the Chief Minister of designing the Kaleshawaram projects to milk money from it. If the project was really serving its purpose, how can the government claim that it was providing free power to 30 lakh pumpsets in Telangana. The variance in claims and practical situation on the ground reflects in it, he claimed.
Because of KCR’s corruption, he claimed, Telangana has turned into a debt state with 5 lakh crore loans hanging on the state’s head. The earlier rulers in 65 years raised only ₹65,000 crore loans and the financial mismanagement of KCR’s government will be a huge burden for the genertions to come.
Fielding questions on the practicality of the promises made to the farmers, he said farm loan waiver would be made possible by plugging the misuse of funds and stopping the ‘looting of sand’ and plugging all corrupt practices, which he said had become lifeline of the TRS rule.
Mr. Reddy assured that the Dharani portal would be abolished and replaced with a new and transparent revenue portal and senior party leaders and revenue experts are already on the job. B. Venugopal Reddy and Modh Sadiq of the TJSF moderated the discussion.
