Senior Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader and former minister T Harish Rao turned up the heat on the Telangana government during the Assembly’s Question Hour, demanding a clear white paper on the Musi River beautification project. He took aim at what he called "contradictory" cost estimates coming from the top, pointing out that the Chief Minister has fluctuated between figures of ₹1 lakh crore and ₹1.5 lakh crore. For Rao, the math simply doesn't add up, and he challenged the government to pin down the actual budget once and for all.
Rao’s primary criticism centred on the government's priorities. He questioned how such a massive sum could be found for riverfront development when the state frequently claims it has no money for student scholarships or employee retirement benefits. "When the public asks for essential welfare, the pockets are empty," he remarked, "but for the Musi project, the government suddenly finds lakhs of crores."
The human cost of the project was also a major focal point. Rao demanded a specific tally of how many houses have been demolished and exactly what compensation has been handed out. He reminded the house that under the 2013 Land Acquisition Act, displaced families are entitled to ₹14.5 lakh, a proper valuation of their property, and a 200-square-yard plot with full saleable rights. He asked bluntly whether any of these promises have actually been fulfilled or if they remain on paper.
Beyond the displacement of residents, the former minister sought technical clarity on the environmental side of the plan. He asked where the government intended to source the 2.5 TMCs of water needed to flush the river, specifically asking if it would be diverted from the Mallanna Sagar reservoir under the Kaleshwaram project.
The debate took a defiant turn as Rao warned the government against targeting the poor. He asserted that the BRS is ready to physically block any further demolitions in low-income neighbourhoods. “We will stand in front of the bulldozers if we have to,” he declared, urging the state to restrict its beautification efforts to vacant government lands rather than tearing down the homes of the weaker sections.
Also read: ‘Vision 2047 has become Poison 2047’: Harish Rao
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