Political bad blood delaying TRS project launch by PM

A 60-feet tall pylon that was constructed on three acres at Choutuppal in Nalgonda district at a cost of Rs 1.50 crore is waiting for months to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is the bad blood between TRS and BJP that has kept the event hanging.

Sources say that though BJP is cordial with TRS, their leadership is still peeved over KCR’s acid comments on PM Modi as a "Shani" and other expletives against the BJP. Even several meetings with Amit Shah had not controlled the damage. Ironically the BJP fire brand and Union Water Sources Minister Uma Bharati had also refused to inaugurate "Mission Kakatiya" in view of bad blood between BJP and TRS.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is keen that Modi should unveil the pylon for his dream Telangana Water Grid project which is already being executed in Warangal and Adilabad districts, though the project pylon was not formally unveiled so far.

Though KCR was to unveil the pylon three months ago he wants it to be unveiled by the PM soon and would seek Rs 8,000-crore special package from the Centre to execute the Rs 40,000 crore water grid project as the TS government is starved of funds.

KCR has taken the project as a prestige issue and declared that he would not seek votes in 2019 if the Water grid project was not completed by them. Such is the priority being given for this particular project by the CM. The government has already tied up with various funding agencies to secure Rs 25,000 crore loans for the project. However, it still needs another Rs 15,000 crore to complete the project and the CM wants to seek a special package from the Centre by inviting Mr Modi to launch the project.

Rao is confident that PM will agree to launch the project, since it is based on the Gujarat-water grid model, which earned name and fame for Modi in the past. “The CM will approach the PM after his return from foreign tour to launch the water grid pylon,” say official sources.