Telangana Assembly session set for heated debate on GHMC expansion, river waters
Hyderabad: The Telangana Assembly session is set to witness heated debates as the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council convene on Monday with a packed agenda.
The Houses will meet at 10.30 am on the opening day. Members will first adopt condolence resolutions for former MLAs Ram Reddy Damodar Reddy and Konda Lakshma Reddy. The government will then table documents linked to several Bills and ordinances.
The agenda includes the merger of municipalities located within the Outer Ring Road into the GHMC. The government will also move proposals to expand GHMC limits and increase the number of wards from 150 to 300. Lawmakers will take up the proposal to remove the two-child norm in local body elections.
In addition, the session will consider amendments to the Telangana GST Act. The government will also seek approval for two ordinances related to employee rationalisation and revision of pay structures.
The Assembly will further examine amendments to the Panchayat Raj Act. It will also grant legal backing to ordinances linked to gazette notifications on Panchayat Raj and Rural Development. Ministers will table audit reports of Telangana Samagra Shiksha and Telangana PM Schools for Rising India. The House will also receive annual accounts of the Horticulture Development Corporation.
Telangana Assembly session to focus on Krishna and Godavari river waters
The Telangana Assembly session will also see an intense debate on Krishna and Godavari river water sharing. Members are likely to focus on Krishna water allocations and the Palamuru–Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Scheme.
The Centre recently returned the project’s Detailed Project Report. The government says the decision came during the previous BRS regime. However, the BRS has blamed the Congress government for the setback.
The issue has already triggered sharp exchanges between Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and BRS president K. Chandrashekar Rao. BRS leaders allege that seeking only 45 TMC of water harms Telangana’s interests. The government, however, maintains that it sought 90 TMC overall. It clarified that it requested immediate approval only for 45 TMC outside the tribunal’s scope.
These differences are expected to dominate the floor discussion.
After the first day, both Houses are likely to adjourn until January 2. Officials cited Vaikuntha Ekadashi, year-end holidays and New Year celebrations. After adjournment, the Business Advisory Committees of both Houses will meet. They will decide the duration of the session, which may last three to four days.
