K Chandrasekhar Rao gets applause for his speech at Amaravati

Guntur: Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao received wide applause during Thursday’s foundation stone laying ceremony at Amaravati.

In fact, his presence appeared to have led to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and AP Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu being a little more circumspect in their speeches on the occasion.

While Mr Naidu could not be forthright on the problems being faced by AP following bifurcation, Mr Modi centred his speech on the need for unity between the two Telugu states.

Mr Modi and Union minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, who also spoke at the function, repeatedly said that the two Telugu states need to work together.

Mr Naidu said that the Telangana government should cooperate in resolving the issues between the two states, Mr Rao promised to extend support for the construction of Amaravati.

Read: Telangana government to extend help to AP in construction of Amaravati

Mr Modi said that he had agreed to attend the Amaravati ceremony when Mr Naidu presented him the invitation but he was happy when he heard that Mr Naidu had gone to Mr Rao’s residence to invite him for the ceremony personally.

Stating that the meeting of the two CMs was a good omen, Mr Modi said the Centre will provide all help for the development of AP and Telangana. He extended his hands to Mr Naidu and Mr Rao, and the crowd roared its appreciation.

When Mr Rao started his speech, people welcomed him with whistles and applause. He spoke without much influence of the Telangana dialect. He said the launch of work for the new capital on Vijayadasami was a good omen. He greeted the people and the AP government and announced that the Telangana government would extend all possible cooperation for the building of a world class capital in Amaravati.