Vajpayee, CBN, two Biharis played key role for Shamshabad airport, says Shahnawaz
Says it was named after Rajiv Gandhi, who is no way connected with the airport
Hyderabad: Former Union minister Shahnawaz Hussain on Sunday said that two Biharis along with then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and then undivided AP Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had played a key role in building the Shamshabad airport but it was named after Rajiv Gandhi, who had no role in the project.
Addressing a large number of Biharis gathered in Hyderabad on occasion of the Bihar Diwas, Hussain said that he, as a Union civil aviation minister, and then former defence minister George Fernandes held a series of meetings in Delhi, following a proposal from Naidu to construct the airport.
Stating that a large number of Biharis are working in several sectors in the state, Hussain said that a large number of IAS and IPS officers from Bihar are also working for Telangana state.
It is estimated that there are around 12 lakh Bihar people in GHMC limits.
Stating that Bihar was never a poor state, Hussain said that Bihar had an international university — Nalanda University — centuries before Oxford and Cambridge. A large quantity of ethanol produced from maize in Bihar was helping a number of Indian states in their industries and helping the country reduce fuel imports.
Stating that Bihari people have been playing a key role in industrialisation of Telangana, Hussain said that the BJP was organising `Sneh Milan’ programme at 80 places in the country to connect with Bihari people on Bihar Diwas and make them proud in their contribution to make the country as a developed nation.
He also pointed out that the Nitish Kumar government had taken up a number of developmental programmes to make the dreams of all Biharis. The BJP would reach out to Bihari people across the country in the coming days to make them proud and connect with their home state, he said.
Malkajgiri MP Etala Rajender said that Bihar was one of the oldest states in the country, formed on March 22, 1912. It had 14 crore people, 10 per cent of the country’s population. He said that the state deserved more devolution of funds. Bihar has transformed in the last 10 years of Modi rule with good infrastructure of roads, bridges and perfect law and order condition, he said.
