Budget Session Flagged Off With Governor's Address

The Telangana Assembly's Budget session for the fiscal year 2021-22 was flagged off today with an address by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan. In her speech, the Governor highlighted the achievements of the state government over the past year, and praised it for its "unique" welfare programs and commitment to development.

Congratulating Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao for guiding the state towards progress and growth, she commended the CM and his government for implementing "hassle-free" industrial policies that had attracted large investments, and had led to the generation of "lakhs of jobs" for Telangana's youth.

"Telangana occupies third place in the country in ease of doing business - the state government created 15.51 lakh jobs through its TSiPASS policy which allowed 15,225 industries to set up shop. In the IT sector too, about 5.82 lakh jobs were created because 250 new IT companies and businesses began operating in the state. I am confident that the state administration will also keep its promise of generating further employment, and will fill the required job posts as and when needed. Further, under the leadership of our CM, the per capita income in the state has seen a considerable increase. This is a result of the thorough financial planning of his government. The TRS regime has also shown great commitment to the welfare of all sections of society. In the agricultural sector for instance, its various irrigation schemes, like the Mission Kakatiya program, have helped lakhs of farmers - its efforts have made an additional 20 lakh acres cultivable. The government has continually strived to bring development to our state, and has successfully tackled power and water shortage problems. Its pension schemes have also helped it empower many disadvantaged sections of society," Soundararajan said.

Commending the state's handling of the ongoing pandemic, she said that the people had been able to withstand the economic devastation caused by Covid-19 due to the government's comprehensive welfare schemes. She also took the opportunity to express her appreciation for the state's health workers who had worked "tirelessly" to battle the deadly virus.

"Both the state government and the health workers in the state have done a praiseworthy job of strategically tackling the pandemic situation. They have successfully carried out inoculation drives where the entire force of frontline warriors and the high-risk demographic have been vaccinated as well. Further, the government's resilience to the economic ruin brought on by the pandemic is a matter of pride for us all," the governor stated.

"The government has also worked to improve the law and order situation in Telangana. Our state capital, Hyderabad, is the 16th most technologically developed city globally in its use of technology to combat crime. Telangana has a staggering 6.65 lakh CCTV cameras for surveillance - 65% of all CCTVs in the nation are to be found in our state," she added.

Providing a glimpse into Telangana's financial priorities, Soundararajan then explained that the TRS government would aim to make use of its resources and funds to improve its "pro-poor" welfare programs.

This year's Budget session will be a ten-day long affair, and the appropriation bill will be passed on March 26.