- It would benefit 97 per cent of water connection holders
- Film, TV industries were given permissions
- Small business people get relief in electricity bills
- Motor vehicle tax exempted for two quarters
Hyderabad: TRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) rained sops on the citizens seeking their support in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) elections. The freebies announced by the chief minister on Monday include free drinking water supply up to 20 thousand litres a month from December. Releasing the TRS election manifesto at the party headquarters here, KCR said the government hopes to prevent wastage of water. He appealed to the people to utilize water with self-discipline.
Waiver of power bills to hair salons, exemption of quarterly motor vehicle tax for the first two quarters of this fiscal to all transport vehicles besides issuing permission to open all cinema theatres are some of the measures KCR announced. These sops will apply to people living outside the city of Hyderabad as well.
The chief minister also announced minimum demand energy charges to commercial and industrial power consumers for the COVID-19 lockdown period from March to September this year. He promised to reimburse the loss to the Discoms on account of the relief given to the people.
Also Read: GHMC Polls: TRS on Top, Congress last
The TRS manifesto has taken into account the problems faced by film and TV industry which employ about 60,000 people. The CM has allowed screening of films in all the theatres observing the COVID regulations announced by the Centre.
Linking of Himayatsagar and Osmanasagar with Godavari water was another promised made in the manifesto. The old promise of developing Musi River Front for recreation was also made.
Old wine in a new bottle : Kishan Reddy
The TRS manifesto is ‘car’bon copy of the old manifesto released before 2016 elections, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G. Kishan Reddy commented. “Only the paper on which it was printed is new. Just a few lines have been changed and the photographs too are the same. The same promises are being made this time too. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is under the impression that people have short memory and do not remember the earlier election eve promises, so the manifesto has been re-printed. If a lot of work was done n the past five years, why repeat the same promises,” Kishan Reddy asked.
Also Read: First List of TRS Candidates for GHMC Elections
TIF welcomes promises
The Telangana Industrialists Federation (TIF) has hailed the promises made in the TRS manifesto for the growth of business and industry. TIF president K. Sudhir Reddy and Secretary M. Gopal Rao said industrial units, particularly micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) were impacted severely by the crisis triggered by the pandemic. The Federation had appealed to the State government to announce some relief to the affected sectors. They expressed happiness that the government had heeded to their request and announced the measures.
Also Read: GHMC Polls: Politics of polarization will not help
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