HYDERABAD: Telangana state winning awards in as many as 12 categories at the national-level sanitation challenges announced by the Centre proved the success of 'Pattana Pragathi' initiated by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao for the all-round development of urban areas in the state, said K.T. Rama Rao, minister for municipal administration and urban development (MAUD).
Addressing a press conference along with MAUD special chief secretary Arvind Kumar here on Saturday, Rama Rao informed that the state government had received a communication from the Centre stating that Telangana was adjudged as one of the top two performing states in the country and had won awards in 12 categories under Swachh Survekshan 2021, Garbage Free City Rating 2021 and Safai Mitra Suraksha Challenge.
Among 4,300 cities and towns, urban local bodies (ULBs) from Telangana won 12 awards under various categories for improving the overall sanitation condition, enhancing citizen awareness and waste management.
Rama Rao credited Telangana's first-of-its-kind achievement to the vision of Chief Minister in launching ‘Pattana Pragathi’ in September 2019 and promptly releasing funds to urban local bodies every month to create infrastructure facilities and to undertake sanitation programmes. Rama Rao stated that over Rs 2,950 crore had been released to urban local bodies since ‘Pattana Pragathi’ was launched.
He said President Ram Nath Kovind would present the awards during the Swachh Amrit Mahotsav being held by the union ministry of housing and urban affairs at Vigyan Bhavan in Delhi on November 20.
Rama Rao said the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) had won the award under "Garbage Free City Rating 2021" among metropolitan cities. Under the less than three lakh population category, Karimnagar Municipal Corporation will receive the Safai Mitra Suraksha Challenge, a first-of-its-kind challenge aimed at the safety and well-being of sanitation workers, by promoting mechanised cleaning.
The ULBs which will receive the awards under Swachh Survekshan 2021 are the GHMC and Nizampet Municipal Corporation, along with the municipalities of Sircilla, Siddipet, Nizampet, Ibrahimpatnam, Ghatkesar, Kosgi, Husnabad and Secunderabad Cantonment.
"Due to effective implementation of the ‘Pattana Pragathi’ since 2019, about 110 out of 139 ULBs have secured Open Defecation Free (ODF) status. The GHMC has been declared ‘Water Plus City’. Telangana is leading in terms of distribution of loans to street vendors with cent per cent achievement through Pradhan Mantri Sva Nidhi programme," Rama Rao stated.
Replying to a query, the minister said the TRS government's agitation against the Centre's discrimination towards Telangana would continue. He added that several issues related to Telangana state were pending with the BJP-led government at the Centre since the formation of state in 2014.
"We have been seeking defence lands to ease traffic woes from Patny Centre to Shameerpet and also from Patny to Kompally for years. We even offered alternate lands to the Centre in lieu of defence lands in Secunderabad Cantonment area but there was no response. There are several such issues which are long pending with the Centre. If they fail to address them, then we are left with the only option of hitting the streets to express our protests as we had done in the case of the paddy procurement issue," Rama Rao remarked.
