B R Ambedkar's foresight made Telangana a reality: K Chandrasekhar Rao
Hyderabad: Stating that the proposed 125-foot tall statue of B.R. Ambedkar will be a landmark of Hyderabad, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday said people of Telangana were indebted to the architect of the Constitution since he had the foresight to include Article 3 which gives the Centre the power to carve out new states.
“If Ambedkar was not there, we would not have got Telangana. When the Constituent Assembly discussed who should have powers to bifurcate a state or form new states in the country, some suggested states should have powers but Ambedkar opposed it and said the Centre should have the powers,” Mr Rao said.
He said that Ambedkar opined some states might have weak regions and dominant region may not allow division of the state. In such a scenario, weaker regions could approach the Centre. “Thanks to the legislation prepared by Ambedkar, Telangana was achieved,” he said.
“No tribute is enough to honour the great leader,” Mr Rao said. The CM laid the foundation stone and conducted bhoomi puja for the 125-foot tall Ambedkar Statue which he said “should kiss the skies” near NTR Ghat.
A 15-storeyed Ambedkar Towers abutting the Tank Bund and a Centre for Dalit Studies will be built at Borabanda at a cost of Rs 8 - Rs 10 crore as part of year-long celebrations.
“Where should the Ambedkar statue should be located? We pondered over it. Since Ambedkar was a follower of Buddha, Buddha (statue) should in front and Ambedkar behind. Behind Ambedkar should be Telangana Secretariat. This is the ideal sequence,” he explained.
The CM announced that from the academic year starting June, 100 social welfare residential schools will be started in the state, 25 residential hostels for Dalit girls who pass Intermediate, five residential degree colleges for boys, 50 residential schools for Girijan children.
“For Dalit, Girijan and minority students, 250 institutions will be started this year. For Dalit and Girijan students going for higher studies to the US or UK, the scholarship amount has been enhanced from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. Dalit and Girijan graduates should not search for jobs but become job providers. The government has started TS pride in this regard,” Mr Rao said.
Meanwhile, the 125th Ambedkar jayanti was celebrated with fervour by TRS, Congress, BJP, TD, YSRC, CPI, CPM and other organisations across the state.
Follow Ambedkar, say judges
Judges of the Hyderabad High Court on Thursday appealed to the legal fraternity to propagate Ambedkar’s ideology and to take his message and writings to the masses, especially the downtrodden.
Justices G. Chandraiah, Ramesh Ranganathan and A.V. Sesha Sai, addressing the legal fraternity at a function organised by AP Bar Council and High Court Advocates Associations of Telangana state and Andhra Pradesh to mark the 125th birth anniversary of B.R. Ambedkar, said that it was essential for everyone, particularly advocates, to read the biography of Ambedkar.
The judges recalled the late leader’s services as a Constitution maker, lawyer and a social activist. Later, the judges felicitated senior counsel D. Prakash Reddy.
