HYDERABAD: Apparently with an eye on the ensuing byelection for Huzurabad Assembly seat, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday announced that the State government’s big ticket welfare scheme — Dalit Bandhu — would soon be implemented for all eligible SCs across the State, and then it would be extended to STs, BCs and even Brahmins.
Addressing a meeting of party workers at Telangana Bhavan after admitting former minister Motkupalli Narasimhulu into the TRS, the Chief Minister reiterated that at a time when the State government had decided to spend Rs 23 lakh crore in the next seven years for the welfare of the people, allocating Rs 1.70 lakh crore for SCs during the same period was not a problem. He said around 100 SC beneficiaries would be selected in each Assembly segment in the State, who would be provided Rs 10 lakh each under Dalit Bandhu by March, 2021.
The Chief Minister said the scheme began with the SCs as, though they had a high population of 75 lakh in the State, they owned only 13 lakh acres of land. In comparison, STs comprised just nine per cent of the population in the State, but owned 25 lakh acres of lands, showing that the SCs were far behind the STs in terms of land ownership.