Telangana CM Revanth Reddy Promises to Break 50% Reservation Barrier | Hyderabad News – Times of India

Just ahead of completing one year in office, Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy tells Robin David why he wanted questions about inter-caste marriages in the caste survey. He also insists HYDRAA has not lost steam and continues to remove encroachments from Hyderabad’s lakes

Your govt will finish one year in Dec. What do you see as your biggest achievements?
Loan waiver and employment to youth. I have given 50,000 govt jobs within 10 months. That is the biggest achievement ever. Of all the 29 states in the country, none have created as many jobs in such a short time. Remember that 15 lakh unemployed youth were attending coaching centres hoping to get jobs. They now know where they stand and are free to do other things. Our farm loan waiver is worth Rs18,000 crore.
But the Prime Minister questioned your farm loan waiver.
This is done through the official account, not through some ‘hera pheri’. I released everything in three phases within 25 days. The accounts are there. The beneficiaries are there. That is why I wrote a letter to Narendra Modi ji after which he deleted his post on X. You look at Modi ji’s track record. He has never before deleted a post. I am in fact ready to share the records with any authorised person.
How do you react to Mallikarjun Kharge’s comment that govts must make promises they can budget?
All states have their budget in mind when they make promises. Karnataka or Himachal, they are making plans only on the basis of their budgets. There is no difference in Telangana. He (Kharge) only reiterated this as an elder of the party.
Are we really in a position to keep our word financially?
It is tough but it is not impossible. Remember that when the Congress govt promised free power to farmers in 2004, everyone said it was impossible, but we implemented it. Everyone opposed Right to Information, Right to Education and MNREGA, but all this is a reality today. Modi ji has waived Rs12 lakh crore to corporates. How was that possible? In the 60 years after Independence, all Prime Ministers borrowed only Rs55 lakh crore. In the past 11 years, Modi ji has borrowed Rs133 lakh crore.
Why were questions about access to places of worship and inter-caste marriage included in the caste survey?
If a forward caste person marries a Dalit or a person from any other caste, these persons should get the benefit (of reservation). The govt has to encourage such social changes. I see inter-caste marriages as a positive step for society. These will help in eradicating casteism. To help, the govt needs data. We are collecting 360-degree data so that no one from the disadvantaged classes is left out.
BCs have asked for 50% reservation. That means exceeding the Supreme Court limit of 50% overall reservation.
We will have to amend the Constitution. We have amended it time and again. We wanted to give more reservations to OBCs and Rahul Gandhi has said that we are going to amend the Constitution. We are going to break the 50% barricade.
But breaking the 50% barricade doesn’t look possible right now.
Arey, when we were fighting against the British, getting freedom looked impossible. Many people said then that the British were too powerful to be beaten and their capacities were next level. People asked how Mahatma Gandhi was going to beat the British without any weapons. But we achieved our goal. We have set our targets high, but we will work it out.
You have said that you want to bring all southern chief ministers on one platform to fight what you perceive as injustice by the Centre. How will this work?
Yes, I am reaching out to all southern chief ministers. I have told my officers to collect information on how much we are paying (in taxes) and how much we are getting back. This is the financial side. On the political side, we will look at how the delimitation of constituencies plays out, given that this must be done on the basis of population. These rules have been in abeyance for the past 50 years. We will see how the BJP tackles this given that 2026 is the cut-off date for delimitation. It wants to increase the total number of Parliament seats as well. But we want to know the terms of reference. As it is, there is no provision to protect the rights of the people of the southern states. So, the Centre must amend the rules. If they don’t amend the rules, we must demand our rights.
Have you already spoken to southern chief ministers, like say Chandrababu Naidu, who has raised similar concerns?
Chandrababu is part of the NDA now. We have to see how he reacts. If the govt of India is concerned about (disparities in) population, then I have nothing to worry about.
But Naidu has been close to you in the past.
Yes, but if my friend has different rules to play by, then I must check my plans. I know him. I have worked with him, but that doesn’t mean he will accept my arguments. He is sailing with Narendra Modi ji now. We have to see… When the situation comes, Pawan Kalyan, too will have to speak up on this issue. He is also a popular personality in this region.
When do you intend to raise this issue?
The One Nation One Election bill will be introduced in next Parliament session. The census (enumeration) will start from Jan 2025. The game will start then. If the Govt of India starts moving towards that (population-based delimitation), then we have to stop it. Even Rahul Gandhi will raise these issues in Lok Sabha. Let us see how the govt (Centre) reacts.
You have cancelled the Keshavapuram reservoir plan of the previous BRS govt. You seem to be in the ‘puray ghar ke badal dalunga’ mood.
Yes, I have cancelled the Keshavapuram scheme to supply water to Hyderabad because it is not needed and the alternative is cheaper. We will now draw water from Mallanna Sagar. If I get water into Osmansagar and Himayat Sagar from Keshavapur, I pay Rs48 per kilo litre of water. From Mallanna Sagar, I pay only Rs4. I would have to lift the water five times to get it to the two Sagars from Keshavapur. From Mallanna Sagar, we need only two lifts. Besides, we can draw water from dead storage as Mallanna Sagar has much higher storage capacity.
Isn’t it time to put out a clear plan on what the first phase of Musi River redevelopment would look like?
In about a month the trunk design will be ready. I have appointed 33 teams who went to all the households (that will be affected in the redevelopment). They have taken all details about the encroachments. We have also appointed a consortium of world-class international consultants for the job. They are the masters of these projects.
Why is HYDRAA suddenly going slow on demolitions?
That is not true. Remember that the previous govt had issued notices to X and Y. Those notices were pending. These I have addressed initially. HYDRAA’s core area is the one within the Outer Ring Road, which is about 2,100 sq km. Within this, we have about 1,700 lakes. Some of these are 100% occupied (encroached) and some partially. My people are trying to notify all of these. Osman Sagar’s full tank level and buffer zone has been notified, but there is no notification for Himayat Sagar. People are saying that Revanth is suddenly keeping quiet and that he has compromised. That is not true. I have given all powers to HYDRAA, but I must follow all rules. Whatever I have done will create history. I am not going to hold back. Remember that HYDRAA is my brainchild.