The Congress party on Friday released a separate manifesto exclusively for Telangana for the May 13 general elections in the state, promising to bring back five villages under Bhadrachalam mandal from Andhra to Telangana.
The manifesto prominently mentioned that the Congress, if voted to power at the Centre, would remerge five villages of Bhadrachalam mandal (block) – Yetapaka, Gundala, Purushottam Patnam, Kannegudam and Pichukalapadu, with Telangana again.
These villages were merged with the Andhra Pradesh after the bifurcation of combined state in June 2014.
“We shall take steps for transferring these five villages back to Telangana for the speedy development of the temple town of Bhadrachalam,” the manifesto said.
State IT minister D Sridhar Babu, who is also the chairman of the manifesto committee of the Telangana Congress, released the manifesto in the presence of All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge for Telangana Deepa Das Munshi and advisor to the state government Vem Narender Reddy at Gandhi Bhavan on Friday.
The manifesto comprises as many as 23 promises specific for Telangana, including establishment of Indian Institute of Management (IIM), revival of Information Technology and Investment Region (ITIR) project and setting up of a southern bench of Supreme Court in Hyderabad.
The IT minister said the Congress would revive the ITIR project sanctioned for Hyderabad during the Manmohan Singh government, to develop a huge IT corridor and create employment to lakhs of youngsters.
“The ITIR will change the face of Telangana given the huge investments that would brought in,” Sridhar Babu said.
The Congress 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.
The other promises made in the manifesto include establishment of a railway coach factory in Kazipet which has been a long pending demand of Telangana, an integrated steel factory at Bayyaram in Khammam district, setting up of a mining university, granting of national project status to Palamuru-Rangareddy lift irrigation scheme, establishment of a regional office of the NITI Aayog in Hyderabad, approval of new airports and sanctioning of a new railway line between Ramagundam-Manuguru.
The party also promised the transfer of central funds directly to gram panchayats as per the 73rd and 74th amendments of the Indian Constitution, besides granting national festival status for the Sammakka Saarakka tribal festival.
