Revival of the Information Technology and Investment Region (ITIR) project in Hyderabad, remerging five Andhra Pradesh villages into Telangana and a bench of the Supreme Court in Hyderabad are the major promises of the Congress party that released a Telangana-specific manifesto in Hyderabad on Friday.
IT Minister D Sridhar Babu, who is also the Chairman of the Manifesto Committee released the manifesto along with All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge for Telangana Deepa Das Munsi, Advisor to State government Vem Narender Reddy.
He said the five villages of the Bhadrachalam mandal, transferred to AP after the State reorganisation in 2014, would be transferred back for the speedy development of the temple town of Bhadrachalam.
He said these promises would be fulfilled once the Congress comes back to power in Telangana. Residents of the villages Yetapaka, Gundala, Purushottam Patnam, Kannegudam and Pichukalapadu on the AP border have been opposing their merger with the Andhra Pradesh since 2014.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government transferred these villages to AP so that the Polavaram project could be taken up without much opposition. The villages are part of the seven mandals transferred to AP and made part of the East Godavari district. However, these villages are now in the Alluri Sitarama Raju district in AP.
ITIR project in Hyderabad
The ITIR project was sanctioned by the Manmohan Singh government for Hyderabad as a part of the State bifurcation with the aim to create an IT corridor to create employment to lakhs of youngsters. It also argued that it would change the face of Telangana given the huge investments that would brought in.
The party also promised to take up the Rapid Rail transit system running parallel to the Hyderabad-Vijayawada highway as assured in the AP Reorganisation Act 2014.
Other promises in the manifesto
Other promises in the manifesto include a railway coach factory in Khazipet, a steel factory in Bayyaram, an IIM in Hyderabad, Mining university, national project status to Palamuru-Rangareddy, a regional office of the NITI Aayog in Hyderabad, the establishment of new airports, a new railway line between Ramagundam-Manuguru, four new Sainik schools, doubling of Navodaya schools, National Sports University, establishment of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), establishment of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), establishment of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) and establishment of the National Aviation University.
The party also promised the transfer of central funds directly to gram panchayats as per the 73rd and 74th amendments of the Indian Constitution. Another important promises includes national status for the Sammakka Saarakka tribal festival.
