Hyderabad, Nov.4 (NSS): The government has extended a message of reassurance to the state’s sarpanches, with Minister for Transport Ponnam Prabhakar announcing that all pending dues will be cleared by March, 2025.
Speaking to the media at Gandhi Bhavan here on Monday, Ponnam Prabhakar responded to the growing concerns and protests by former sarpanches over unpaid bills. He acknowledged the financial challenges facing the State and urged sarpanches to exercise patience, emphasizing there is no need for further unrest.
The Minister attributed the ongoing unrest and tragic suicides among sarpanches to the previous BRS government’s negligence, suggesting that those responsible for the sarpanches’ distress are now hypocritically staging protests in their name.
Drawing an analogy, he stated that BRS leaders speaking on sarpanch welfare is akin to “a cat preaching after consuming a hundred rats.” He cautioned sarpanches against falling prey to political manipulations.
In a sharp retort to Union Minister and BJP Telangana unit president Kishan Reddy’s criticism, Minister Prabhakar questioned Reddy’s contributions to Telangana, asserting that his actions lacked the true spirit of Telangana.
The Minister argued that, under KCR’s influence, Kishan Reddy has aligned with the BJP leadership and challenged him to disclose any central government initiatives genuinely benefiting Telangana over the past decade.
He invited Kishan Reddy and another Union Minister Bandi Sanjay to debate at the Martyrs’ Memorial, where he questioned the BJP’s support during Telangana’s flood crisis.
Although the Telangana State had incurred damages worth Rs.10,000 crore due to floods, the central government has allocated only Rs. 400 crores, he pointed out.
