Telangana, with its policies, progress and emphasis on all-round development under the leadership of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, silenced naysayers and emerged a role model, Minister for Finance and Health Minister T. Harish Rao said here on Friday.
The level of success achieved in a plethora of areas, from power supply, irrigation, social welfare, industrial development, job creation, maintenance of law and order to deploying technology for societal good was making everyone seek Telangana model, he said, addressing the 4th edition of CFO Conclave organised by the CII-Telangana.
Recalling how those who were opposed to the State formation and who had raised various doubts came around to acknowledging the policy approach, Mr. Harish Rao said Telangana was the only State providing round-the-clock quality power supply.
Surplus power
From being power-deficit, nine years ago, the State had transformed into a power surplus-State with the installed capacity ramped up from 7,000 MW to 17,000 MW. “By the year-end, it will be 25,000 MW and from next year Telangana [as a surplus State] will be in a position to sell power,” he said, adding the government had spent a whopping ₹40,000 crore, since 2014, to strengthen the power sector.
The Minister cited measures taken to improve irrigation and bring more land under cultivation, especially through the Kaleshwaram, the world’s largest lift irrigation project, and supply piped drinking water to all households. Prior to the State formation, power and water supply issues had echoed in the State Assembly. However, with the Telangana government addressing them, the opposition had little to speak about power and water supply.
Noting that the Chief Minister had stressed all-round development, welfare of all sections of society and use of technology to monitor and improve progress of programmes, Mr. Harish Rao said Telangana had become a role model, among others, on account of a per capita income well above the national average, highest IT job creation last year and largest paddy producer in the country. “What the State is doing today, India will do tomorrow,” he asserted.
On the role of CFOs, the Minister said they served as the backbone and key to development of their organisations and in turn to the economic development of the country. CII Telangana chairman C. Shekar Reddy was among those who addressed the inaugural session of the conclave on ‘ Transcending new frontiers: technology, sustainability and governance.’
