Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy blames BRS for Telangana’s financial crisis

Hyderabad: Chief minister A Revanth Reddy launched a scathing attack on the previous BRS govt, accusing it of pushing Telangana into a financial crisis through reckless borrowing during its 10-year governance. Speaking in the assembly on Thursday during a debate on the appropriation bill, he said the Congress govt is working to fulfil its promises such as loan waiver, Rythu Bharosa, and other schemes, despite inheriting a massive debt burden from the previous regime.

“The former BRS govt borrowed ₹8,19,151 crore, including loans through corporations, in just 10 years. In contrast, 16 chief ministers of united Andhra Pradesh together borrowed only ₹90,000 crore between 1956 and 2014,” he pointed out. Additionally, he noted that when Congress took over in Dec 2023, there were pending bills worth ₹40,000 crore.

Managing debt burden

While admitting that the Congress govt had taken loans worth ₹1.58 lakh crore, Revanth clarified that ₹1.53 lakh crore was used to repay the principal and interest on debts left by the previous BRS regime. This meant that Congress had effectively utilised only ₹4,600 crore from its borrowings in the last 15 months.

The debate saw heated exchanges between Revanth and BRS MLA KT Rama Rao over Telangana’s financial health, governance, and land acquisition policies. KTR questioned the govt’s claims of financial distress, asking, “If Telangana is in a financial crisis, how is the govt proposing multi-crore projects?” He also mentioned that the chief minister remarked on the lack of lenders willing to provide loans to the state govt.

In response, Revanth criticised the BRS govt for failing to fulfil its commitments, particularly the farm loan waiver. He highlighted that in its two terms (2014-2023), BRS only paid ₹16,908 crore, including loan interest. In contrast, the Congress govt waived ₹2 lakh loans for 25.35 lakh farmers, spending ₹20,615 crore in just 15 months.

Other welfare schemes implemented by the Congress government include, ₹12,291 crore Rythu Bharosa amount disbursed so far, ₹1,550 crore Rythu Bima paid, ₹11,061 crore given as a ₹500 bonus per quintal, and on free power for farmers, ₹15,332 crore was spent on 29.14 lakh farmers.

Focus on employment

“The govt pioneered free power for farmers. We continued Rythu Bima despite financial constraints. Instead of acknowledging our work, the opposition is making noise. BRS should compare what they did in 10 years versus what we accomplished in 10 months,” Revanth said.

The chief minister also provided details on govt job notifications and appointments, emphasising that his administration was committed to providing employment opportunities. “Even though people rejected them, the BRS leaders’ mindset has not changed,” he said.