Closer looks suggest that in terms of resources, Telangana is in no way inferior to the coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions.
Is the pace of development in Telangana when compared to the 2 other regions in AP really as bad as is usually projected?
Closer looks suggest that in terms of resources, Telangana is in no way inferior to the coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions.
The only drawback was that the exploitation of resources in the region was not at the optimum level.
The much-claimed "tardy growth" can be attributed to the failure of successive spineless public representatives who have believed only in self-advancement since November 1, 1956. The problem has only been compounded by the same people being elected repeatedly, leading to their amassing wealth at the cost of the voters and the region.
One leader who won his seat for consecutive terms dictated terms in his constituency, and, as a result, flourosis had spread rampantly. The disease crippled innocents, and is prominent even today in Nalgonda district, not far from the giant multi-purpose Nagarjuna Sagar project built across the massive Krishna river.
The Polavaram project envisaged in 1943 still remains on paper. When "Telugu Ganga" could be fructified in merely a decade by the NTR government, why not Polavaram, ask experts (the Telugu Ganga, an offshoot of the Srisailam project, irrigates over 6 lakh acres, besides providing drinking water to Tamil Nadu).
Similarly, the Singur project in Medak district, the Nizam Sagar project in Nizambad district, the Sriramsagar project in Mahabubnagar district, the Kadem Dam in Adilabad district and the Paloncha dam in Khammam district, among others, have enabled the irrigation of lakhs of acres and also provided drinking water. Interestingly, the Sriramsagar project's left canal irrigates 22 lakh acres in Nalgonda, Khammam, Krishna and West Godavari districts.
As seen, there are fewer projects in the 2 other regions than in Telangana.
On the same plane, thermal power plants in Kothagudem, Khammam district, Ramagundam and Karimnagar district, and hydel power plants in others, have made the region self-sufficient. Job generation remains one of the significant benefits of these projects.
So with Telangana being quite rich in deposits and rivers, it can only be said that the people of the region have, unfortunately, only reaped the fruits of the actions of their own elected representatives.
Meanwhile, Ranga Reddy district, as a financial district and with an international airport, dots the world map. So does Greater Hyderabad. In fact, till recently, i. e. prior to the global meltdown, the RR and Hyderabad districts were destinations for NRIs.
The question remains - is Telangana really as backward as is claimed?
Courtesy: INN