HYDERABAD: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday urged the Centre to approve Telangana’s landmark bills providing 42% reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) in local bodies, education and employment.
The CM was addressing the gathering after hoisting the national flag during the 79th Independence Day celebrations held at Golconda Fort.
Citing figures from the socio-economic survey conducted by the state government, covering 1.12 crore families, Revanth said the findings revealed that BCs constitute 56.33% of the state’s population.
“Based on this data, our government has introduced 42% reservation for BCs. The bills passed by the state legislature have been sent to the Centre for approval. On this historic occasion, I urge the Union government to clear the bills,” he said.
Revanth underscored his government’s commitment to social justice, highlighting that Telangana is the first state in the country to implement Scheduled Caste (SC) sub-categorisation following a Supreme Court verdict, classifying 59 sub-castes into three distinct groups.
The chief minister also painted a stark picture of the state’s fiscal health, revealing that the Congress government had inherited a staggering debt burden of Rs 8,21,652 crore. This included Rs 6,71,757 crore in borrowings, Rs 40,154 crore in pending employee dues and scheme liabilities, and Rs 1,09,740 crore in obligations under the SC/ST sub-plan, Singareni Collieries, and the power sector, he said.
Despite these constraints, the government has serviced Rs 2,20,676 crore in debt — Rs 1,32,498 crore in principal and Rs 88,178 crore in interest — while continuing welfare initiatives, he added.
‘Mahalakshmi scheme benefitted women, RTC’
Revanth, meanwhile, said that the Mahalakshmi scheme, which provides free bus travel for women, was a success. “Launched within 48 hours of the government taking charge, the initiative has issued over 200 crore zero-fare tickets, saving women passengers an estimated Rs 6,790 crore collectively,” he highlighted.
“This is not just about free travel — it is about financial independence, educational access, and social mobility for women,” he said, adding that the scheme revitalised the state’s transport corporation.
The government has set an ambitious target of creating one crore women crorepatis, backed by a Rs 46,689 crore allocation for women’s welfare and development programmes.
Linking social empowerment with economic progress, the CM reiterated that his Telangana Rising 2047 vision aims to transform the state into a $1 trillion economy by 2035 and a $3 trillion economy by 2047. “This is not just a plan — it is a resolve to place Telangana proudly on the global stage,” he declared.
The CM’s Independence Day address also covered a wide spectrum of government initiatives, including loan waiver and investment support under Indiramma Rythu Bharosa, distribution of fine rice and issuance of new ration cards, large-scale housing projects for the poor and tribal communities, revival of Aarogyasri and infrastructure upgrades, skill development and job creation drives for youth, irrigation projects and the establishment of HYDRAA for urban flood control, new skill and sports universities, promotion of international events and strengthening policing and drug control measures.