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TRS takes swipe at PM Modi over inauguration of fertiliser plant
The Prime Minister will be landing at Begumpet airport at around 1.30 pm on Saturday and from there he will fly to Ramagundam in Peddapalli district in the chopper to formally inaugurate the RFCL plant at Mahatma Gandhi Stadium in the NTPC township.
Hyderabad Ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) on Tuesday took potshots at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for coming to Telangana on November 12 to dedicate the Ramagundam Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd (RFCL) to the nation, even as chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao decided to stay away from the event.
The Prime Minister will be landing at Begumpet airport at around 1.30 pm on Saturday and from there he will fly to Ramagundam in Peddapalli district in the chopper to formally inaugurate the RFCL plant at Mahatma Gandhi Stadium in the NTPC township.
At the same event, Modi is expected to inaugurate the newly laid 54-km railway line between Kothagudem (Bhadrachalam Road) and Sattupalli, which was operationalised in May this year. He may also lay the foundation stone for three expansion works on Sironcha-Mahadevpur, Bodhan-Bhainsa and Medak-Elkaturthi sections of the National Highways.
A TRS leader, who refused to be quoted, said the chief minister would not be either receiving the Prime Minister at Begumpet airport or attending the event at Ramagundam. He would depute a senior minister in the cabinet, apart from senior officials, to follow the protocol formalities.
However, the TRS took to Twitter to make a sharp attack on the Prime Minister on his visit. It found fault with the Modi government for insulting the people of Telangana for not following the basic protocol in the RFCL launch ceremony.
“The invitation should have the name of Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao immediately after the Prime Minister’s name. But the chief minister’s name was mentioned somewhere down in the invitation, thereby insulting him. In fact, the Telangana government, too, has its share in the RFCL plant,” the ruling party said.
The TRS also sought to know what the Prime Minister would be bringing to Telangana during his visit to Ramagundam. “Will you come with an empty hand or announce any projects? What will you tell the people about the injustice done to the state and what about the promises made in the bifurcation act? When will you release funds recommended by Niti Aayog?” the party asked.
The TRS also mocked Modi for dedicating Ramagundam fertilisers more than one and a half years after it started commercial operations. “It is ridiculous that the Prime Minister found time to dedicate the factory which started its operations long ago. Is it part of your strategy to cover up his conspiracy to pull down the Telangana government or hoodwink the people with sweet talk?” the party asked.
Quoting the RFCL website, the TRS leader quoted above said the RFCL declared its commercial operations on March 22, 2021. During 2021-22, the RFCL produced 4.90 lakh tonnes of urea, he said.
Meanwhile, Communist Party of India (CPI) state leader Chada Venkat Reddy called upon the party cadre to state protest demonstrations during the visit of the Prime Minister to Ramagundam on November 12. He accused the Central government of trying to privatise Singareni coal mines.
Telangana BJP official spokesman N V Subhash said it was unfortunate that the TRS sought to politicise even developmental work undertaken by the Centre.
“The RFCL had been defunct over a decade and it was due to the initiative taken by the BJP leaders, the Modi government revived the project by spending over ₹600 crore. What is wrong if he dedicates the project to the nation now? After all there are no elections now to gain any political mileage?” Subhash asked.
