Buddhist Dharma Chakra Day KCR dials Huzurabad Dalit chiefs over sop

K. CHANDRASHEKAR RAO told a meeting that the government was ready to spend up to `1 lakh crore for the Dalita Bandhu scheme.

Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao is making phone calls to Dalit leaders in Huzurabad constituency and inviting them for his orientation programme on Dalita Bandhu on July 26 at Pragathi Bhavan, sources said.

The Chief Minister on Saturday called Vasala Ramaswamy, a resident of Tanugula village of Jammikunta mandal. Ramaswamy, a Dalit leader worked with the TRS earlier but is not active in party now after he was denied party ticket to contest mandal parishad election in 2019.

The Chief Minister enquired about his and his family’s well-being and later talked about Dalita Bandhu, sources said.

The CM told Ramaswamy that he was inviting four Dalit leaders from each gram panchayat and each ward in every municipality totalling 412 to discuss the Dalita Bandhu scheme and seek their suggestions to make the programme a big success.

Rao told Ramaswamy that he would hold a day-long meeting at Pragathi Bhavan and host lunch for all the participants.

When Ramaswamy complained about Etala Rajendar’s working style when he was a minister, the Chief Minister said, “Etala is a small person. No need to take him seriously. Don’t think about small things but think about big things like Dalita Bandhu.”

Rao is planning to launch Dalita Bandhu in Huzurabad in August first week. Until then, ministers were asked to visit the constituency every day to launch schemes of their departments or distribute the benefits of existing welfare schemes.

Animal husbandry minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav will launch the second phase of the sheep distribution scheme to beneficiaries this week. Civil supplies minister Gangula Kamalakar will launch distribution of new ration cards to the poor this week.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister on Saturday declared that the government wsas ready to spend `80,000 crore to `1 lakh crore on the Dalita Bandhu scheme in a phased manner.

He was addressing Dalit leaders, intellectuals, activists and public representatives, who had come from Huzurabad constituency to Pragati Bhavan here to thank the CM for appointing Banda Srinivas as chairman of the SC Development Corporation.

Union tourism minister G. Kishan Reddy joins President Ram Nath Kovind and other dignitaries for a customary ceremony of planting a Bodhi sapling from Bodh Gaya at Rashtrapati Bhavan after presenting a memento. The International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) organised an event on the eve of ‘Asadha Purnima - Dharma Chakra Day’. Kishan Reddy said that Buddha’s teachings reinforce the message of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam — The world is one family.