Kavitha Demands Immediate Declaration Of Drought-Hit Mandals In Telangana

Telangana Rakshana Sena president Kalvakuntla Kavitha on Sunday demanded that the Telangana government immediately declare drought-hit mandals across the state, alleging that severe drought conditions were affecting farmers, crops and drinking water supplies.

Addressing the media at the party office in Banjara Hills, Kavitha accused the government of failing to take timely measures despite rainfall deficiencies and warnings about the possible impact of Super El Niño. She claimed groundwater levels had fallen to around 20 metres in some areas and said farmers in several places were being forced to burn crops they could no longer save.

Kavitha said rainfall was 1% below normal in July, 38% deficient in August and 30% deficient in September. She questioned why the government had not convened a special Cabinet meeting involving the agriculture, irrigation and power departments to assess the situation and formulate an immediate response.

She said nearly 1.20 crore acres were currently under cultivation and demanded 24-hour free power supply until November to protect standing crops. According to her, some villages were receiving electricity for only six to seven hours a day. She urged the government to purchase additional power or explore alternative arrangements if required.

Kavitha also pointed out that Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh had already declared drought-hit mandals and urged Telangana to follow suit to become eligible for assistance from the Centre. She appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to support southern states and facilitate power supplies from states generating surplus electricity.

She warned that the drought could also intensify drinking water shortages, claiming that several reservoirs were nearing dead storage. Kavitha accused the government of failing to protect Krishna river water and said greater attention to Narlapur Reservoir and Kalwakurthy projects could have improved irrigation and groundwater conditions.

She also linked power and agricultural difficulties to rising prices of vegetables and essential commodities and criticised the government over alleged delays in clearing dues to Singareni.

Kavitha said party constituency in-charges would visit villages to assess drought conditions. She also raised the GO 317 employees' issue, alleged police action against protesting teachers on Gandhi Jayanti and highlighted hospital safety concerns under the party's ‘Operation Blue Code’.

On electoral reforms, Kavitha demanded a return to paper ballots instead of EVMs, saying her party would take the issue to Delhi. She added that the Telangana Rakshana Sena would contest the Khairatabad by-election and other elections held in the state.