HYDERABAD: A remark made by Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy had the social media go up the wall on Tuesday.
Countering Telangana Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav, who accused the Railways of throwing breadcrumbs at Telangana in the Union Budget, Kishan Reddy said before the BJP-led Union Government came into power in 2014, the people of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh did not have proper access to railways and were restricted to travelling in “erra buses”.
Social media took him to task saying that the railways existed in Telangana even before India attained Independence.
They referred to Nizam’s railway in Telangana, which used to run several trains and was known for punctuality and cleanliness.
Even in those days, toilets used to have steel basins and other fixtures, while ceiling fans used to be in a working condition.
The railway lines started by the Nizams in 1879 were taken over by the Indian Railways in 1950.
Meanwhile, Union Minister for Railways Piyush Goyal, stung by the caustic remark of Minister Talasani Srinivas, who shared the dias with him at a function at Secunderabad railway station on Tuesday, shot back at him saying the railways had done a lot more than what was possible.
Goyal said the allocation for development work in the South Central Railway had gone up from Rs 258 crore in 2014-2015 to Rs 2,602 crore in 2020-21.
Goyal said that the allocations would not be state-wise, but zone wise. The Union Minister also said that the Railway Ministry would complete the work on Phase-II of MMTS project soon and requested the state to release its share of funds on a priority basis.
Goyal laid the foundation stone for the development of a satellite terminal at Charlapalli station, electrification of Yerraguntla- Nandyal section, and free high-speed wifi facilities at 427 stations.
Development work
Goyal said the Charlapalli station would be developed with an expenditure of around Rs 250 crore, while the other terminal station at Lingampalli would be given due priority.
The Charlapalli station is centrally located and surrounded by important residential colonies. The station is directly connected with the outer ring road and is more convenient for mobility of both public and private transport. Work is in progress to extend the suburban network beyond Charlapalli station up to Ghatkesar.
Stirred up a hornet’s nest
The netizens refer to the Nizam’s railway in Telangana, which used to run several trains and was known for punctuality and cleanliness. The railways started by the Nizams in 1879 were taken over by the Indian Railways in 1950
Laxman meets Goyal BJP’s state president K Laxman requested Union Minister Piyush Goyal to take steps to introduce Anthyodaya Tejas, Hamsafar and Uday trains from Secunderabad.