CM Revanth Meets FM Nirmala Sitharaman, Seeks FRBM Exemption For Rs 30,000 Crore Edu Loans
Revanth Reddy left for New Delhi on Monday to interact with the party MPs from Telangana in view of Vice-Presidential polls
Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has appealed to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to exempt the Rs 30,000-crore loan that the state government expects take for the education sector, from the limits imposed by the Fiscal Reforms and Budget Management (FBBM) Act limits. He urged that the spending on education should be treated as capital investment rather than routine expenditure.
The Chief Minister sought the Centre’s approval for the creation of a special corporation for the purpose, and requested exemption for these loans from the FRBM limits.
At a meeting with Sitharaman in Delhi on Tuesday, Revanth Reddy explained that the state government was working to provide corporate-level education to students from BC, SC, ST and minority communities, who constitute nearly 90 per cent of the state’s student population.
He briefed the Union finance minister on the establishment of 105 Young India Integrated Residential Schools, one each Assembly constituencies. Construction has commenced on four schools while tenders for the remaining institutions have been finalised. Each school is designed to accommodate 2,560 students, ultimately creating educational opportunities for nearly 2.7 lakh children. These schools will be equipped with modern facilities, laboratories and sports stadiums, requiring an estimated expenditure of ₹21,000 crore.
The Chief Minister highlighted that the government had planned an additional investment of ₹9,000 crore for upgrading junior colleges, degree colleges, technical institutes and other higher education institutions with advanced labs and infrastructure.
Pointing to the financial strain caused by indiscriminate borrowings of the previous BRS government at high interest rates, Revanth Reddy requested Sitharaman to permit restructuring of such loans to ease the burden on the state exchequer. He said that Telangana’s focus on education should not be hampered by past financial mismanagement and sought Central assistance to push forward the reforms.
According to official sources, Sitharaman responded positively to the proposals and assured him that the Centre would examine the requests carefully. The Chief Minister expressed confidence that Telangana’s model of large-scale residential schools and advanced higher education institutions would serve as a pioneering step in bridging the gap for socially and economically weaker sections.
The meeting was also attended by MPs Mallu Ravi, P. Balaram Naik, Suresh Shetkar and Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy, besides state finance secretary Sandeep Kumar Sultania and Central projects coordination secretary Gaurav Uppal.