Hyderabad: Accusing the Congress govt of creating an artificial drought, former minister T Harish Rao said farmers were now facing power cuts, irrigation shortages and crop losses under the Congress rule, and demanded an apology from chief minister A Revanth Reddy.“This is not a drought caused by nature. It is an artificial drought caused by the Congress govt. Water is available in the rivers, but the govt is not operating the pumps properly. Power is also not being generated to meet the needs of farmers,” he said.Speaking at a public meeting held at the Govt Degree College grounds in Siddipet as part of the three-day celebrations marking 10 years of Siddipet district on Sunday, Harish Rao alleged that the govt had failed to maintain adequate coal stocks, affecting power generation at thermal power plants. He questioned why irrigation pumps at Kaleshwaram, Kalwakurthy and Devadula were not being operated for 24 hours.The BRS deputy floor leader said Ranganayaka Sagar was not being filled to its full capacity despite the availability of Godavari water. He also alleged that pumps at Devadula were being operated for only eight hours a day, affecting farmers in parts of Warangal and Siddipet districts.He questioned why Kalwakurthy pumps were being operated for only eight hours when water was available at Srisailam. He also referred to the transfer of Krishna water towards Kuppam in AP and asked why farmers in nearby Palamuru were being denied adequate irrigation.On Siddipet, Harish Rao said the people of Siddipet had benefited greatly from the formation of the district.“Before the district was formed, people from areas such as Nanganur, Chinnakodur, Doulthabad, Thoguta, Husnabad, Cherial, Kondapak, Wargal and Dubbak had to travel long distances to Sangareddy for basic administrative work. After its formation, administration was brought closer to the people and helped improve public services. New mandals and gram panchayats also supported local development,” he said.He said the BRS govt had also brought an IT Tower to Siddipet so that local youth could find jobs in the technology sector without having to migrate to other cities.‘Projects cancelled’Harish Rao alleged that the Congress govt had focused on cancelling development projects in Siddipet rather than completing them. A few of them include an SC residential degree college, a sports stadium and tourism projects, he said, pointing out that unfinished structures at some locations were evidence of projects being left incomplete. He also alleged that the govt had failed to maintain roads and buildings developed during the previous administration.Harish Rao thanked the people of Siddipet and the public representatives who had supported the formation of the district. “I am a son raised by the people of Siddipet. Whether I hold office or not, I will continue to work for them as long as I live,” he said.
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