K Chandrasekhar Rao kept out of Central committee for farmers

Hyderabad: The relations between Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and Prime Minister Narendra Modi do not seem to be as good as they were during their first terms. Mr Rao, who became a champion of farmers with his Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bhima and irrigation projects did not get a place in the high-power committee of chief ministers constituted by the Centre.

TRS leaders expressed displeasure at Mr Rao not being named to the committee which is meant to draw up ideas for the transformation of Indian agriculture. It may be recalled that Mr Rao was not able to get an appointment to meet Mr Modi to invite him to launch the Kaleshwar-am irrigation project.

Reacting to the BJP leader’s criticism at not inviting the PM, Mr Rao had previously shot back, “Is it necessary to invite the PM for every programme?” This is being seen as yet another proof of the growing gap between the two.

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis is the convener of the committee set up by the Centre to present solutions for the transformation of Indian agriculture. Others on the panel are the CMs of Karnataka, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The terms of reference of the committee are to evolve measures for transformation of agriculture, raising farmers’ incomes and suggest modalities for adoption and time bound implementation and other related issues.

Mr Rao was the first Chief Minister to introducing the Rythu Bandhu scheme to extend investment subsidy to farmers. Some other states implemented the same scheme. Just before the Lok Sabha elections Mr Modi also started a similar scheme across the country.

Mr Rao also evolved the Rythu Bhima scheme for farmers. To provide water to farmers, the Telangana state government constructed the Kaleshwaram project in record time.

After winning four Lok Sabha seats the BJP leadership is concentrating on emerging as the alternative to the TRS and wants to come to power in the state in 2013. Keeping this in view, Mr Modi may have decided not to give as much importance to Mr Rao as he had done in the previous term.