Telangana CM’s statement on meeting demands of employees triggers row
The employees have been demanding resolution of their long-pending demands, including release of five dearness allowance arrears, payment of ₹9,000 crore dues to the retired employees
Slugfest has erupted over Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy’s remarks that he won’t be able to meet the financial demands of the state government employees even if he is cut into pieces.
“The total financial commitment of the state government to meet its basic obligations every month is ₹22,500 crore, but we are able to generate revenue of only ₹18,500 crore. Even if you cut me into pieces, I can’t raise more than ₹18,500 crore per month, of which ₹7,000 crore goes towards debt servicing, another ₹7,500 crore for salaries and pensions. With the remaining amount, we are implementing welfare schemes,” Revanth said while addressing a meeting of the police officials in Hyderabad on May 5, while referring to the notice given by the Telangana government employees’ joint action committee (JAC) for a series of agitation programmes starting May 15.
The employees have been demanding resolution of their long-pending demands, including release of five dearness allowance arrears, payment of ₹9,000 crore dues to the retired employees, appointment of a pay revision commission and reverting to old pension scheme among others.
The chief minister further said that the state was financially bankrupt. “Nobody is trusting us. Bankers are looking at state representatives as thieves when they go for borrowing discussions. No one is giving appointments to us in New Delhi fearing we would seek financial help,” he said.
His statement generated a big debate in the industrial sector, particularly in the real estate market, about the precarious financial position of the state. “We fail to understand whether Revanth Reddy has realised the potential impact of his statements, as investors are getting doubts over the Telangana’s economic stability,” a representative of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said on condition of anonymity.
“Such a statement from the chief minister himself will shake investor confidence, threaten jobs, and discourage new businesses from setting up operations in Telangana,” he observed.
A senior office bearer of the Telangana real estate developers’ association said Revanth Reddy’s statement has come like a bolt from the blue to the real estate sector in Hyderabad, which he said, has already been in the downtrend for the last one year.
“Even if what the chief minister said about the financial position is right, he should not have expressed it in public but should present a positive picture of the state’s economy. Even if you wear a torn shirt inside, you should try to cover it up with a blazer,” the association representative said.
Addressing reporters on Monday, Bharat Rashtra Samithi lawmaker Kalvakuntla Kavitha said the chief minister’s statement on the state financial position was nothing but belittling the self-respect of Telangana.
“The Revanth Reddy-led government incurred debts amounting to ₹1.80 lakh crore in the last one and a half years. Out of this, only ₹80,000 crore was used to repay loans and interest. Where did the remaining ₹1 lakh crore go. The government should release a white paper on the state’s revenues, expenditure and loans incurred,” she demanded.
She also alleged that the Revanth Reddy government was planning to sell or mortgage 175,000 acres of land acquired by Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) to meet the financial requirement of the state, by converting the corporation into a public limited company.
Meanwhile, the JAC of the Telangana government employees has called for protests in response to chief minister’s remarks. “We have planned a series of protests, including wearing of black badges, lunch-hour demonstrations, pen down agitations etc starting May 15,” JAC chairman Maram Jagadeeshwar said.
On Monday, the JAC leaders held a meeting with deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who holds finance portfolio, and also a three-member official committee of IAS officers — Naveen Mittal, D S Lokesh Kumar and D Krishna Bhaskar — to discuss on their demands.
“We have been patiently waiting for the last 16 months about our long-pending demands. We shall take a call on the proposed agitation at a meeting of the JAC on Tuesday, where we shall discuss the government’s assurances,” Jagadeeshwar said, adding that the employees would get into direct action after June 9, if the demands were not conceded.
