KTR takes charge as TRS Working President , to handle party affairs in Telangana State

A special office will reportedly be set up for KTR at the party headquarters, so it will be easier for him to function out of there.

Senior Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader KT Rama Rao officially took over the reins of the party from his father and state Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday. It was announced last Friday that KTR, as he is more popularly known, was appointed as the party Working President. KTR assumed charge at 11:55 am at an event held in Hyderabad at Telangana Bhavan, the party’s headquarters.

Since early on Monday, several TRS supporters arrived at Telangana Bhavan with flags and banners to catch a glimpse of the leader, as a rally was undertaken with KTR on top of a party campaign vehicle. After entering the TRS headquarters, KTR garlanded the Telangana talli (mother) statue in the premises before heading to the office.

The ‘auspicious time’ was decided by senior party leaders as KTR is not known to be deeply superstitious like his father. However, he agreed to go with the decision.

Senior leaders, including T Harish Rao and almost all incumbent ministers in the previous government, were present at the venue. Traffic restrictions were also in place as TRS supporters took over the road in front of the office that is situated opposite KBR Park.

According to reports, a special office will be set up for KTR at the party headquarters, so it will be easier for him to function out of there.

Last week, TRS President and CM K Chandrasekhar Rao, who has decided to focus on national politics, entrusted the key responsibility to his son, who is seen as number two in the party and the government. The CM has entrusted the responsibility of taking forward the party in accordance with his plan to KTR, the most trusted person in the party, a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office had said.

While the statement claimed that KCR would be preoccupied with governance activities like expediting construction of irrigation projects and also implementing electoral promises in letter and spirit, it is also seen as a clear shift by the Telangana Chief Minister to work on the ‘Federal Front’ that he has been talking about.

“As of now, KCR wants to concentrate more on Delhi, but they are likely to follow in the footsteps of how Akali Dal transferred power from Prakash Singh Badal to his son Sukhbir. KTR is first being given the party to learn political organising and gain experience on that front, before being given a senior leadership position in the government, like a Deputy CM. But there is still time for that,” a party insider had told TNM earlier.

KTR, the only son of KCR, was re-elected to the Assembly from the Sircilla constituency. KTR was Minister for Industry and Information Technology in the previous cabinet. He is likely to be inducted in the new cabinet next week.

It also remains to be seen what post KCR’s nephew, Harish Rao, who is the competitor to KTR, will get in the newly-formed Telangana government. Harish, considered as a leader with a mass base, has been associated with the TRS since it was floated by KCR in 2001. KTR had quit his job in the US to return and join the Telangana movement before the 2009 elections.

Harish, who was earlier reported to be unhappy with KCR’s plans to promote his son as his heir apparent, congratulated KTR on being entrusted with the key responsibility and hoped that he would further strengthen the party.

Harish, who served as a minister in KCR’s previous cabinet and is likely to be inducted in the new cabinet next week, told reporters that he and KTR worked together in the recent elections and they would continue to do so.

Reports suggest that though Harish Rao won with a thumping majority from Siddipet, there is a possibility that he would contest the Lok Sabha polls in 2019 and be given a larger role in the Centre.

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K C R appoints son KTR as TRS working president

Making clear his intentions to concentrate on national politics, Telangana Rashtra Samithi Party President and Chief Minister Kalvakuntla Chandrashekhar Rao, Friday appointed his son K Taraka Rama Rao as the TRS Party Working President (Executive President). This elevation is being seen as the first step by KCR to anoint his son as CM at a later stage while he takes a bigger role in national politics.

With a landslide victory, there is no opposition in the party to KCR’s decision to elevate his son. However, it is a shock to his nephew T Harish Rao, a popular leader within TRS as well as in the state, who won from Siddipet with a margin of over 1.10 lakh votes. Harish Rao is the trouble-shooter with organisational skills in the party but with KCR’s popularity at an all-time high, he may have no choice but to accept his cousin’s elevation. KTR did not hold any position in the party in the existing setup

K T Rama Rao, 42, was Minister for IT, Panchayati Raj, and Municipal Administration and Urban Development in KCR’s first Cabinet. He was re-elected from Sircilla with a margin of 89,909 votes. Suave and tech-savvy, KTR is very popular among youth, and even before he was officially elevated today as working president, he was already accepted as second-in-command by most TRS leaders. He is credited with initiating and establishing T-hub, the incubator for business start-ups in Hyderabad.

KTR is also likely to be made a minister in KCR’s second term. As working president, KTR will also take care of the day-to-day party affairs, organisational matters, and make efforts to expand the party. “He has a good temperament and is very popular in the TRS. He is smart and intelligent. He has honed his skills over the years and is a rising star in the party. I think his elevation as working president is good of the party,’’ TRS leader K Keshava Rao said.

Responsibilities among others, enrolment of party membership, constructing party offices in districts and develop the party as the strongest one, have been entrusted to KTR. CM KCR is of the opinion to develop TRS as the largest party in the country. KTR who has been successfully and efficiently handling and performing the roles and responsibilities of both party and government, has been entrusted with the new role of working president by KCR. CM Rao strongly believes and is confident that the working style, the commitment, the direction and leadership qualities of KTR will help in leading the TRS party efficiently and effectively by him in the days to come.

On Tuesday, KCR has said that he would be soon forming a non-Congress, non-BJP national party with a consortium of regional parties.

KCR said he has decided to concentrate more time on national politics to bring a qualitative change in his political activity on a countrywide level. KCR took this decision of appointing KTR as working president, with a view to entrust the responsibility of party affairs to a most trusted and efficient person, since he would be preoccupied with the governance activities like expediting construction of irrigation projects and also to implement the electoral promises in letter and spirit, a statement said.

With the strong belief that TRS party alone saves Telangana, people overwhelmingly supported the party and elected it with a landslide victory in the recent elections, the statement said. In view of KCR’s decision to play a pivotal role in national politics and take forward the welfare and development programs in the state, the workload on him would be increased. Against this background, KCR has entrusted the responsibility of taking forward the party in accordance with his plan, to KTR, the most trusted person in party.

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Telangana Elections LIVE : As polling nears end in 119 constituencies, Telangana recorded a Final Voter Turnout Of 73.2 %

As polling nears end in 119 constituencies, Telangana recorded a Final Voter Turnout Of 73.2 %.

–After Jwala Gutta, IPS Officer’s Name Missing;

–Manish Sisodia Slams EC

56.17% Turnout Till 3 PM; Sania Mirza Casts Vote In Hyderabad

PV Sindhu after casting her vote In Hyderabad

48.1 per cent voter turnout till 1 PM in Telangana.

8.97% Voter Turnout Till 9 AM

As many as 1,821 candidates including a transgender are in the fray in the election.

For the first time, Election Commission is using Voters Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) in Telangana.

224 video-surveillance teams and 133 video-viewing teams have been pressed into service.

Polling will start at 7 am and end at 5 pm, while in 13 constituencies which were classified as Left Wing Extremist-affected, polling ends one hour before (4 pm).

The TRS, seeking a second term in office, is going alone, as also the BJP.

The Congress has stitched together “Prajakutami” (People’s Front) along with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Telangana Jana Samiti (TJS) and the CPI to take on the ruling TRS, led by caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR).

The assembly polls in Telangana were originally scheduled to be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections next year, but the House was dissolved on September 6 as per a recommendation by the state cabinet.

Security was beefed up at bordering areas which were identified as Left Wing Extremist-affected regions.

One lakh police personnel including 25,000 central paramilitary forces and 20,000 from other states are engaged in poll duties.

Campaigning by political parties came to an end at 5 pm Wednesday.

Over 2.80 crore electorate are eligible to exercise their franchise in the State, which has a total of 32,815 polling stations across.

More than 1.50 lakh polling officials including reserve staff are in the process of giving final touches Thursday to make the election to the 119-member House a smooth affair.

After a high-voltage campaign that saw war of words among contending parties, voting for the Assembly elections in Telangana will begin on Friday with the Congress-led alliance challenging the ruling TRS, and the BJP seeking to make it a triangular contest.

India’s youngest state, Telangana, goes to polls on Friday, 7 December, to constitute its second Legislative Assembly. The single-phase polling will see voting in all 119 constituencies.

The main contenders for this election remain to be the KCR-led TRS, which was in power for the last four years, and the Congress-led ‘Mahakutami’ (or ‘Grand Alliance’), which included the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) among many others.

Telangana is going to polls nearly seven months earlier as the TRS government dissolved the Assembly before its term ended
The Congress is considered the main Opposition in the state and is leading a grand alliance called ‘Mahakutami or Prajakutami’
TRS chief K Chandrashekar Rao will remain the caretaker chief minister till the new government is formed

What You Must Know About Telangana Polls 2018

What Do the Pre-poll Surveys Say?

The Aaj Tak-India Today survey predicts a massive victory for the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), with 43 percent voters predicted to cast their ballot for the KCR party. The Congress, on the other hand, is expected to garner 18 percent of vote share.

Interestingly, 11 percent of those surveyed wanted KCR to be the next prime minister, while 44 percent voted for PM Narendra Modi and 39 percent for Congress President Rahul Gandhi.

Another survey conducted by VDP Associates, claims that the TRS is all set to win at least 80 seats, while the Congress is expected to win around 20 seats. The survey predicts that the BJP will win seven seats, with the AIMIM getting eight.

The Main Contenders in Battlefield Telangana

The BJP, although not a main contender, is expected to swing some percentage of vote share its way. In all, there are now as many as nine political parties vying for power in the state.

Early Polls in Telangana

A united Andhra Pradesh has voted for both state Assembly and the Lok Sabha at the same time — from 1999 till 2014. However, since August 2018, media reports suggested that KCR was getting ‘battle-ready’ to dissolve the Assembly and go to polls in winter 2018, along with Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram.

KCR dissolved the Telangana Assembly on 6 September, his supposed ‘lucky’ date.

Hours after dissolving the Assembly, he released a list of 105 candidates who will fight the elections from Husnabad, the very place he launched his 2014 campaign.

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Telangana Polls : TRS cadre wants KCR as CM for 15 more years, says KTR

In an informal chat with reporters here on Tuesday, Rama Rao blamed Congress leaders Vanteru Pratap Reddy and T Narsa Reddy for levelling baseless allegations against Harish Rao.

The entire TRS rank and file want K Chandrasekhar Rao to remain as Chief Minister for 15 more years, TRS leader KT Rama Rao said, adding that as party workers, both he and Harish Rao also wish the same.

In an informal chat with reporters here on Tuesday, Rama Rao blamed Congress leaders Vanteru Pratap Reddy and T Narsa Reddy for levelling baseless allegations against Harish Rao. “Harish Rao has already clarified that he was born in TRS and will die in the same party. We work together and family is above politics,” Rama Rao said. He also clarified that Chandrasekhar Rao would not change his Gajwel Assembly seat.

Excerpts of KT Rama Rao’s interaction with media

Disputes within Grand Alliance

The Grand Alliance is not picking up and there are disputes within them over sharing of seats. Once, they announce their candidates, the position of the TRS will further improve. There will be no time for them to pacify the dissidents after announcing the candidates. Though, the Congress and the TDP joined hands their votes will not be transferred.

All settlers will support TRS: KTR

In 2014, TJS Kodandaram’s followers were given Congress tickets. The CPI and Congress forged an alliance then. TDP and Congress jointly fought Paleru and other elections but people supported TRS.

TRS will get 100 seats
The differences within the TRS have almost subsided in the last one month. Going for early polls is a daring step and TRS will definitely win not less than 100 seats. .

On settlers issue
In 2014 Assembly elections, people in Hyderabad were angry with Congress and TRS for bifurcation of the state. Later, they changed their views on seeing law and order in the city.
They supported TRS in the GHMC elections. The same trend will continue in this Assembly elections too.
BJP will forfeit deposits in 100 seats
BJP candidates will forfeit their deposits in 100 seats. TRS will win in the five segments, which were represented by BJP in the dissolved Assembly. We will field strong candidates in Musheerabad and Amberpet. I used to watch a serial “mungerilal ke haseen sapne” in which the hero always dreamt of becoming Sachin Tendulkar one day and a filmy hero another day. The BJP leaders are like that. They cannot find out 70 candidates and they are dreaming of winning 70 Assembly seats.

Federal front
Congress and TDP are like birds of same feather. The Federal Front will be given focus after the Assembly elections. We believe that the growth of regional parties will strengthen the country and it will lead to real federal spirit. Stronger the States, strong the country. No party will be able to form government at the Centre after 2019 elections. Our aim is not to see Federal Front in power, but true implementation of federal structure. Coalition government failed in the Centre in the past but trying for it is not wrong.

‘Naidu is adopted Son of Congress’
AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has criticised Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the past but now he has become an adopted son of the Congress, KTR said. Congress could not face TRS and hence joined hands with Naidu, he added. Naidu is paranoid leader and whatever is happening in AP, he is making Prime Minister Modi responsible and then linking TRS with BJP, KTR said On the other hand, Naidu is behaving as if only he can face Modi in the country.

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Deputy Chief Minister Mahmood Ali hopeful of TRS victory

Deputy Chief Minister Mahmood Ali while inaugurating a new TRS party office in Mahbubnagar on Monday expressed hope and re-affirmed confidence that the TRS will win the next elections with thumping majority and continue to carry forward the good work initiated by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.

While speaking on the occasion Mahmood Ali said that the TRS government had initiated various welfare and development programmes and achieved more success in just 4 years compared to the development done by the erstwhile governments in the past 60 years.

He pointed out that CM KCR is committed and dedicated to make the state a Golden Telangana. “The Congress party leaders have been deceiving the people and are losing hope among the people and do not have their patronage,” said Mahmood Ali while expressing confidence that TRS will win the upcoming elections.

He also said that the Congress party does not have courage to defeat the TRS and formed Mahakutami and now making unnecessary allegations. He also lamented that the Congress party and their allies even till date have failed to declare MLA contestants in the State and are in a helpless state.

Adding further, Dr. C. Laxma Reddy, caretaker Health Minister hoped that the people of Telangana are with TRS party and he also made it clear the people do not believe the opposition parties’ false propaganda as they are creating hurdles in the way of development.

He also urged the people to support the pink party and support the TRS aspirants in the district. Srinivas Goud, MLA Mahbubnagar, TRS district president Badmi Shiva Kumar and others took part in the programme.

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EC team visits Telangana to review poll preparedness

An 11-member high-level team led by Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat is on a three-day visit to Hyderabad to review poll preparedness in Telangana.

On the first day of its visit, the EC team held interactions with representatives of political parties.

It held separate meetings with the representatives of all recognised political parties, including BJP, BSP, CPI, CPI(M), Congress, MIM, TDP and TRS.

The Commission will also hold a crucial meeting with the District Electoral Officers and Police Superintendents to review the arrangements in detail.

The team will also meet senior officials of Income Tax, Excise, and Enforcement agencies besides transport, railway and airport authorities before leaving for Delhi on Wednesday.

Telangana is scheduled to go to polls on 7 December.

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Telangana pride flies high as bikernis play Bathukamma mid-air

More About Telangana :

In a watershed moment in the history of Bathukamma celebrations in Telangana, four Bikernis made history by playing Bathukamma high up in the air! It was a spectacular assertion of Telangana pride as the gang of Hyderabadi daredevils, Jai Bharathi, Poornima Karamala, ASD Shanthi and Jayasri Kosaraju, soared over 100 meters high over Bison Polo Ground, on paramotors, with their flower stacks in tow, to pay homage to the Mother Goddess on Dasara day. The ladies, who recently returned from an adventurous bike ride across nine districts of Telangana, are clearly overwhelmed. “It was the best Bathukamma of our lives. We got to see how the festival is celebrated across the state as we sang and danced with women everywhere we went, all through the nine days. As we were riding around in ethnic handlooms, there was a lot of buzz around us all through the trip. So, to play Bathukamma in the air was a perfect culmination to the festive season,” says Jai Bharathi, who is an architect by profession.

ASD Shanthi, a constable of She Teams, believes the event is celebration of the Telangana woman. “Bathukamma is a festival of female felicitation that epitomises the folk ethos of Telangana. So the idea behind the ride was to promote ethnic weaves and spread the message of woman empowerment. This daredevil mid-air celebration was the brain child of Telangana’s Department of Language and Culture and Telangana Tourism. It shows that the women of Telangana are capable of doing anything and are ready to take on the world,” says Shanthi. Shanthi adds, “I’ve grown up playing Bathukamma from my childhood itself but celebrating it in the air was something else altogether. I always had this dream of flying like a bird; and it came true and how!”

Poornima Karamala, director of a Hyderabad-based event management firm, nods in agreement saying, “It was the first paramotor ride of my life and boy, was it fun! It was a perfect way to pay homage to Goddess Gauri and woman power in general. The experience was inspirational. Now, I want to learn paramotoring.”

Jayasri Kosaraju, the only non-Telanganite in the group, says playing Bathukamma was a first for her and admits it’s a “dream come true”. “I am from Vijayawada, so I never played Bathukamma. It was only after we moved to Hyderabad 15 years ago that I learnt about the festival. But now I have become one of the first four women to have played Bathukamma mid-air! I’m gonna brag about it for the rest of life,” says the fashion designer, smiling.

Harikrishna, Director, Department of Language and of Culture sums it up saying, “Bathukamma is the pride of Telangana and for many centuries we have celebrated the festival on land. So along with the Department of Tourism, we decided to take the festivities to the next level by celebrating Bathukamma on water and air as well. That’s not all, this year Bathukamma celebrations took place across continents in Australia, America, and Europe and Africa.”

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Biggest Qualcomm project outside US to generate 10,000 jobs in Telangana

Even as the Assembly elections near, another major investment has come knocking on Telangana’s door. Qualcomm Telecommunications on Saturday announced that it would set up its largest campus outside the United States in Hyderabad, investing `3,000 crore for the project and creating 10,000 employment opportunities. The firm has proposed to start construction work in 2019.

Delegates from Qualcomm called on caretaker IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao to discuss plans of starting operations in Hyderabad. “Qualcomm will invest $400 million to set up their campus in Hyderabad. This is one of the largest investments by a marquee company after the formation of the State,” an official release said.

The proposed campus will focus on driving technology leadership in 5G, IoT and mobile platforms research, Rama Rao said. Phase-1 of the project will stand on a built-up space of 1.7 million sq ft, housing about 10,000 employees, Qualcomm engineering vice-president Shashi Reddy and director for operations Chandra Shekar Kumili informed the TRS leader. Qualcomm plays a key role in driving the wireless revolution by making mobile communications accessible and affordable.

The Qualcomm facility in Hyderabad will be its largest campus globally after its San Diego headquarters. Qualcomm, a world leader in 5G technology, is working on the next big change in cellular technology and aiming at creating a new era of intelligent devices focusing on remote delivery of healthcare services and IoT.

IT Minister Rama Rao noted that by setting up a mega-campus in Hyderabad, its largest globally after the HQ in San Diego, Qualcomm had joined the elite list of companies that had their largest presence globally outside their headquarters in Hyderabad. “We have Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Facebook and now Qualcomm. The list will only get bigger as there are a few more companies that have evinced interest and we are working actively with them,” Rama Rao said.

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Telangana selects cohort of 10 start-ups for govt mentorship programme

The Telangana State Innovation Cell has launched a Government Mentorship Programme by selecting the first cohort of 10 start-ups. The programme has been rolled out for the ITE&C Department, focusing on big data, machine learning and artificial intelligence, media, content and several other emerging technologies, which are potentially useful for solving various problems for the Government.

This is a unique programme in the country, which aims to build familiarity between start-ups and government officials. The programme has received over 200 applications from all over the country, of which 19 were invited for the launch to present their ideas before the panels consisting of government officials and industry experts from 50K Ventures, which is the programme partner.

Selected start-ups for the first cohort of the Government Mentor Programme include Lakeer, Precily, Stumagz, Kaarmic Education Services, Raasta Studios, Red matter, RHPD Software Solutions, Thanos, Legitdoc and IOT Research Labs.

As part of the programme, this cohort of start-ups will be mentored by government officials for a period of three months, where they will be guided to develop products for better governance.

Government Mentor, GTV Rao, Commissioner E-Governance said: “The Government Mentor Programme is reflective of Telangana government’s commitment to work with start-ups to provide better governance and help start-ups in their growth.”

Konatham Dileep, Director, Digital Media, after the pitch sessions by the start-ups said, “We are taking forward two smart solutions and giving them a PoC, and we liked two other digital media solutions, where we will provide mentoring, to make their solutions relevant to work with government or large-scale organisations.”

Vineel Nalla, co-founder, 50k Ventures said, “It was great to collaborate with the TSIC’s initiative of Government Mentor Program, to bridge the gap between government and start-ups.”

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TRS manifesto for Telangana elections 2018 to be unveiled later this month, says IT minister KT Rama Rao

The manifesto of the TRS for the coming Assembly elections in Telangana would be unveiled this month, IT Minister KT Rama Rao said Thursday.

Making the announcement during an interaction on Twitter, Rao, son of caretaker chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, also answered questions related to infrastructure, industries development.

Our manifesto will come out later this month. Our manifesto will be a combination of all the welfare activities which were promoted in the past, he said.

Meanwhile, his father, on a campaign trail, continued his attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, accusing him of plotting to halt the development of Telangana. Addressing a public meeting in Nalgonda, Chandrasekhar Rao also slammed Naidu over the proposed alliance between TDP and Congress, describing him as a ‘betrayer’.

He also hit out at the Congress leaders.”Today, Chandrababu Naidu wants to defeat Telangana by bringing in wrong forces… nothing will happen. If your (people) blessings are there, Naidu and Congress cannot harm Telangana. I have come to seek your blessings and want you to extend the your support..,” he said

KCR, as he his popularly known, also came down heavily on Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy and former minister K Jana Reddy, accusing them of failure to ensure development of Nalgonda district and its people.

Citizens in Nalgonda suffered due to drinking water contaminated with fluoride and ‘Mission Bhagiratha’ of his government would address this problem by supplying purified drinking water, he said.

Quoting a recent survey, the caretaker chief minister claimed TRS would win 110 seats out of 119 Assembly seats in Telangana.

Rama Rao, in his about an hour-long live Twitter session, said urban and rural infrastructure, healthcare and education will also be given due importance (in the manifesto).

Netizens asked several questions related to principal Opposition Congress and its proposed alliance with TDP.

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