HYDERABAD: As the GHMC election campaigning is gaining momentum, all the political parties are roping in their star campaigners and top leaders to campaign for their candidates.
On Tuesday, it was the turn of Union minister for urban development M Venkaiah Naidu to switch to the campaign mode. Campaigning for the TDP-BJP candidates in Saidabad and other divisions, Venkaiah Naidu stressed on the need for a corporation headed by a party, which works in tandem with the Centre.
‘’The Central government led by Narendra Modi is focusing on development of urban areas through schemes like Smart Cities, Amrut cities which stresses on providing housing to all, water supply, better transportation and other infrastructure,’’ he said.
Venkaiah Naidu listed out various schemes like sanction of 30,000-odd houses to Hyderabad city alone apart from sanctioning `2,500 crore by Hudco (which works under his ministry) for the state governments drinking water project, Mission Bhagiratha, and said there should be a government at the state and in the GHMC which will effectively use the funds allocated by the Centre.
‘’You have witnessed development during the Vajpayee government at the Centre and N Chandrababu Naidu regime in the state which worked in tandem. The development in IT sector, the setting up of various defence establishments and other development works are only because the then state and Central governments worked hand in hand,’’ he said.
‘’You might ask as to what a local of Saidabad can get with these institutions, my answer is that by all these development activities, the people of this city will get jobs,’’ he said.
‘’There should be an able leadership and a corporation that runs in tandem with the Centre. Otherwise, the packages (by the Centre) gets leakages in between,’’ he said in his characteristic style winning applause from the public.
Making an indirect reference to the publicity blitzkreig of TRS in the city, he advised people not to get deceived by advertisements and statements of the leaders. Venkaiah Naidu minced no words in criticising MIM. “Hyderabad is becoming ‘adda’ for communal elements. Some parties are coming up with beef agenda and dividing people on communal lines,’’ he said.