KTR flays Centre for going back on rail coach factory promise

Hyderabad, March 5:  Telangana's Minister for Industries K.T. Rama Rao on Saturday slammed the union government for going back on its commitment to set up a rail coach factory at Kazipet and termed it as another fraud on Telangana.

The minister came down heavily on Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw's statement that there is no possibility of setting up a railway coach factory in the state.

KTR, as the state minister is popularly known, alleged that the Centre has one again betrayed Telangana and called it downright cheating and deception.

He recalled that the coach factory at Kazipet was one of the commitments made to Telangana in Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014.

He said that the Railway Minister's statement is a classic example on how the BJP ruled government at the Centre is acting against the interests of Telangana since the formation of the new state.

He alleged that the Modi government has shown discrimination towards Telangana by going back on commitments on Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR), steel factory at Bayyaram and national project status to an irrigation project in Telangana.

He said Ashwini Vaishnaw's statement on Kazipet railway coach factory was nothing but an extension of the discrimination policy of the Centre on Telangana. The Centre had evaded its responsibility on setting up the Railway Coach factory and it is a death blow to the interests of Telangana and an outright cheating of the people of the state.

KTR expressed his anguish that the assurance of Kazipet railway coach factory, which was given constitutionally on the floor of the Parliament, is not being fulfilled due to the anti-Telangana policies of the Central government. Several memoranda were given to the Centre requesting it to grant the setting up of the railway coach factory and the state government had acquired 150 acres for the project and handed it over to the Centre. The Minister said it was unfortunate that the Centre did not respond positively despite several requests made by the CM, ministers and MPs to the Centre.

KTR said that while ignoring the assurance given under the AP State Bifurcation Act, 2014 about the Kazipet Railway Coach factory, and its statement in 2017 that there was no need to set up any Railway Coach factories in the country, the Centre in 2018, due to its political interests, had announced setting up of Marathwada Railway Coach factory in Latur in Maharashtra. This alone exposed the double standards of the Centre, he added.

The Minister alleged that by dumping the assurance of the Kazipet coach factory, PM Narendra Modi has shown his utter contempt against the development in Telangana state and his conspiracy against the people in the state. He said this will render injustice to Telangana state especially to those unemployed youth in Warangal region who are eagerly waiting for the jobs and it is like taking away employment from their hands.

KTR said people in Telangana would definitely reject the policies of the cheating by the BJP government at the Centre. He demanded that all the assurances given by the Centre, as a constitutional obligation, should be fulfilled forthwith. He said a movement would be launched against the Centre till it clears the setting up of the Kazipet railway coach factory and the government would fight on behalf of the people.

The BJP minister and MPs, leaders should answer on the double standards of their party in Telangana if they still have any sense prevailing in them. Or else, the Telangana people would chase the BJP leaders away, he added.