Ahead of elections, PM makes ₹13.5k-cr infra push in T'gana

Telangana will vote to change the state government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday in one of his most prominent election campaign events for the state this year, a political blitz that comes at a time the region is recording an intense battle including the Congress and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

- Srinivasa Rao Apparasu

Modi addressed a large rally at Palamuru in Mahabubnagar, ahead of which he laid the foundation stones for several developmental projects and inaugurated some finished structures, worth altogether over ₹13,500 crore, according to a government release.

“Telangana wants a change. The people of this region reposed their faith in the BJP in the last Lok Sabha elections, municipal elections and the by-elections to the state assembly. I am confident they will bless the party in the days to come,” Modi said.

Since it was carved out of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, the BRS (then TRS, or Telangana Rashtra Samiti), has only had BRS leader K Chandrasekhar Rao, whose party was steadfast on the statehood demand.

Soon after Modi’s public rally at Mahabubnagar, BRS working president and Telangana information technology and industries minister KT Rama Rao said it was not Telangana which was looking for a change, but the entire country wanted a change of government at the Centre.

KTR took to X (formerly Twitter), saying the people of Telangana were very much "aware that NaMo stood for cheating."

“The steering of the BRS party is very much in the hands of KCR, but the steering of the BJP has gone into the hands of Adani,” he retorted.