Poll year heat on, demand for 2BHK & Bandhu rises

Hyderabad: With assembly elections set to be held later this year, elected representatives and party leaders are already feeling the heat from their constituents with demands to sanction 2BHK housing units, Dalit Bandhu money and sheep distribution scheme to them. Some desperate MLAs are even trying to get additional sanctioning of the schemes to woo the electorate in their assembly constituencies.
Some MLAs are urging chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao to allot more housing units and additional benefits to them as they fear backlash from the electorate if they do not meet their demands. “We are under tremendous pressure for getting welfare schemes sanctioned to our voters, especially 2BHK houses, Dalit Bandhu, pension, sheep distribution and other schemes. Only the CM can grant additional sanction for any scheme. Some MLAs have managed to get them,” an MLA from Greater Hyderabad limits told STOI.
According to sources, speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy got sanctioning of 7,000 housing projects (2BHK units) for his Banswada constituency in the past three years. Similarly, MLAs representing Balkonda (minister Prashanth Reddy), Chennur, Siddipet, Devarakonda, Wanaparthy, Chintamadaka and Khammam got additional units.
“In the previous government, MLAs were used to giving the list of beneficiaries. Now, the state government asked the district collectors to prepare the list of beneficiaries after verification of eligible people and announce them in gram sabhas. MLAs have little control over the selection of beneficiaries,” an official in the housing department said.
The party workers and leaders are also asking the MLAs to extend Dalit Bandhu scheme either for them or their friends or relatives. In phase I, the government had given only 100 beneficiaries to each constituency, which has now increased to 500. The government earlier announced 1,500 beneficiaries in each constituency would be covered by March. But the MLAs want at least 1,000 beneficiaries more to be added to the list since 2023 is the election year.
Apart from this, there is a huge demand from Golla Kurmas and Yadavs for the sheep rearing scheme as the government provides 75% subsidy for the scheme.