Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao today said that his government was working at offering equal respect to all religions and their people. And like all the religions were getting their due under his dispensation, the Christian festival of Christmas would also be celebrated as a State festival henceforth and in a grand manner, he said.
KCR thus directed officials to treat Christmas as a State festival hereon on the lines of Bathukamma, Bonalu and Ramzan.
At a high-level review meeting at the Secretariat, KCR said that besides at 100 churches in the twin cities, the Christmas festivities should be conducted in 95 Assembly segments.
During the festival, the officials should distribute clothes among 2 lakhs poor Christians, KCR added.
The Chief Minister also directed the officials to throw a grand party on behalf of the government at the Mass to be conducted on Sunday, December 20, before the main festival on December 25.
He asked officials to prepare an action plan for the purpose, and said that senior IAS officer Raymond Peter and Minority Welfare Committee Chairman A K Khan would conduct a coordination meeting in this regard.
KCR also asked the officials to prepare proposals for the setting up of 60 Gurukul schools for the Muslim minorities from the next academic year.