Hyderabad: Irrigation, Food & Civil Supplies Minister Capt N Uttam Kumar Reddy announced on Wednesday that the state government would begin distributing new ration cards from July 14 at Tirumalagiri in Tungaturthi constituency. The programme will be formally inaugurated by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, with Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka also participating.
Addressing a review meeting at the Nalgonda District Collectorate, the Minister directed collectors to complete verification of all eligible applications by July 13 to ensure no deserving family was left out. Uttam Kumar Reddy stressed that the beneficiary selection process must be transparent and corruption-free.
“The government’s focus is to ensure that every eligible person gets a ration card without any discrimination,” he said, adding that review meetings will now be held twice a month to maintain strict oversight.
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Uttam Kumar Reddy explained that Telangana’s flagship free fine rice scheme delivers 6 kg of rice per person every month to nearly 3.10 crore people, about 84% of the population, through fair price shops, at a cost of over ₹13,000 crore annually. In June, July, and August, the state provided three months’ worth of rations at once to ensure uninterrupted supply, distributing 18 kg per person, 105 kg per Antyodaya family, and 30 kg per Annapurna family.
He sharply criticised the previous BRS government for neglecting food security and ration card enrolment. “At the time of Telangana’s formation in 2014, there were 89.73 lakh white ration cards, but the BRS added only around 49,000 new cards, mostly during by-elections, ignoring lakhs of families,” Uttam Kumar Reddy pointed out. He said the Congress government had received lakhs of new applications and was addressing them in a mission-driven manner.
He highlighted that the new ration card distribution is a landmark step in providing relief to the poor, showing the Congress government’s commitment to equitable growth and social welfare.
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Uttam Kumar Reddy also outlined the government’s efforts to complete pending irrigation projects in the erstwhile Nalgonda district on a war footing. He urged public representatives, including MLAs, to actively participate in land acquisition and resolve forest clearance bottlenecks to avoid project delays.
He revealed that efforts were underway to resume the long-stalled Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) works, with the government coordinating with engineers from the Indian Army’s engineering department, who would be deputed to conduct electro-magnetic LIDAR surveys to accelerate technical approvals and restarts.
Referring to Nalgonda’s special place in the government’s priorities, Uttam Kumar Reddy reminded that past welfare programmes, including subsidised fine rice distribution, had also been launched from this district.
He stressed the need to maintain absolute transparency while selecting beneficiaries of any government scheme. He proposed shifting from monthly to bi-monthly review meetings to enable tighter monitoring and accountability. The Minister also emphasised expediting the completion of major pending works such as Dindi, HLC lining, Nellikal Lift Irrigation, Pillayipalli Canal, Dharmareddy Canal, and other critical irrigation projects.
Uttam Kumar Reddy was joined at the review meeting by Roads & Buildings Minister Komatireddy Venkatareddy, who outlined approvals for ₹45 crore for Sangem Bridge and sanction of double-lane roads under the HAM scheme, and SC, ST & Minority Welfare Minister A Laxman Kumar, who assured all support to advance the district’s growth. Also present were MLAs, MLCs, MPs, district collectors of Nalgonda, Suryapet, and Yadadri Bhuvanagiri, and senior officials of irrigation, revenue, agriculture, education, and health departments.
Several legislators used the occasion to raise pending issues, including repairs and maintenance of canals, land acquisition problems, funds for resettlement, and the need for restarting applications for social welfare schemes.
Uttam Kumar Reddy summed up the meeting by reiterating the Congress government’s commitment to prioritise the poor, ensure dignity through robust food security, and rapidly complete long-neglected infrastructure projects. “Together, with transparent, accountable systems and honest officials, we can ensure no family is left behind,” he said.
