80th Independence Day Celebrations Held in Grand Manner

Minister Vivek Venkatswamy Hoists National Flag at Medak District Police Headquarters

MEDAK, August 15: The 80th Independence Day celebrations were held in a grand manner at the Medak District Police Headquarters on Saturday. Minister for Shakti (Labour, Employment, Training & Factories) and Mines & Geology Dr. G. Vivek Venkatswamy attended the celebrations as the chief guest and hoisted the National Flag at the parade ground. He later inspected the police parade and received the ceremonial salute. Students presented patriotic and cultural programmes reflecting the spirit of the nation and Telangana’s cultural heritage.

On the occasion, Minister Vivek extended his greetings to the people of Telangana and the country. He recalled the sacrifices and contributions of great freedom fighters, including Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and paid rich tributes to the martyrs who laid down their lives for the country’s freedom. He also remembered the Telangana movement leaders who fought for the formation of the separate state.

The Minister said the Constitution of India, drafted under the guidance of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, has emerged as an inspiration for countries across the world. He stressed the collective responsibility of citizens to safeguard constitutional values such as liberty, equality, democracy and social justice and strengthen the nation further.

He said the Telangana Government, under the leadership of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, was working with the vision of ‘Telangana Rising-2047’ to transform the State into a national leader and position it prominently on the global stage. Comprehensive plans were being formulated for balanced economic, social and administrative development.

Welfare Schemes

The Minister said women in Medak district were benefiting from free bus travel under the Mahalakshmi scheme. Women had made 4.49 crore free journeys in the district so far, providing them a benefit estimated at ₹161.49 crore.

Under the Gruha Jyothi scheme, up to 200 units of free electricity were being supplied to 1,29,756 domestic consumers in Medak district. The Government had so far borne a subsidy of ₹108.80 crore towards the scheme.

Farmers were receiving investment support of ₹12,000 per acre under Rythu Bharosa. So far, ₹751.84 crore had been credited to the bank accounts of 2,66,674 farmers in Medak district.

In view of deficient rainfall, the Agriculture Department had advised farmers to opt for alternative crops instead of paddy. Accordingly, alternative crops including red gram, green gram, black gram, soybean, maize, castor, vegetables and oil palm were being cultivated over 28,933 acres in the district.

The Minister said the medical assistance limit under Rajiv Aarogyasri had been enhanced from ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh. As many as 39,339 poor people in Medak district had received medical treatment under the scheme, for which the Government had spent ₹110.84 crore.

Aarogya Lakshmi was being implemented through 1,076 Anganwadi centres in the district. Free nutritious food was being provided to 5,633 pregnant women, 3,771 lactating mothers and 24,954 children aged between six months and three years. Another 22,979 children in the three-to-six age group were being provided eggs, nutritious food and snacks every day.

To reduce the financial burden on women and poor families, LPG cylinders were being supplied at ₹500 under the Government’s subsidised scheme. In Medak district, 1.27 lakh beneficiaries had so far received 8,64,388 cylinders, with the Government bearing a subsidy of ₹26.14 crore.

Through the Public Distribution System, 15,033 metric tonnes of fine rice sufficient for three months was being distributed free of cost to 2,42,353 families in the district. Since January 2025, 28,582 new ration cards had been issued in Medak, while another 1,06,448 new members had been added to the ration system through family-member additions and other modifications.

During the Yasangi 2025-26 season, procurement centres were established to ensure that farmers received the Minimum Support Price for their paddy. A total of 4,25,305 metric tonnes of paddy had been procured and ₹1,116.06 crore paid to farmers so far.

Smart Ration Cards

The Minister said Telangana had launched a pioneering programme to distribute smart ration cards, describing the initiative as a first-of-its-kind programme in the country. Beginning the programme on Independence Day was particularly significant, he said.

Smart ration cards would ensure that eligible beneficiaries received Government benefits in a more transparent and efficient manner. A total of 2,41,393 ration-card beneficiaries in Medak district would receive smart ration cards.

Education and Housing

In the 2026-27 academic year, 72,896 students were studying in 905 Government schools across Medak district. The Government was establishing Telangana Public Schools to provide education on par with corporate and international standards.

A Young India Integrated Residential School was being established at Ramayampet on 20 acres at an estimated cost of ₹200 crore. The facility would provide accommodation and world-class education to 2,500 students.

The Government’s objective was to provide a pucca house to every poor family without a home. Under the Indiramma Indlu scheme, 8,955 houses had been sanctioned in the first phase in Medak district, with a budget allocation of ₹447.75 crore. Priority was being given in the second phase to families living in huts, with the aim of transforming villages across Telangana into hut-free villages.

Construction had already commenced on 7,382 sanctioned houses, while 4,353 houses had reached the completion stage. Based on construction progress, ₹169.18 crore had so far been directly credited to the accounts of 6,309 beneficiaries.

Digital Land Survey and Women’s Empowerment

The Government had undertaken a statewide digital land survey programme. In Medak district, 24 non-cadastral villages were selected in the first phase and 70 cadastral villages in the second phase. Resurvey had been completed in 10 villages so far, making Medak the leading district in the State in the programme.

The Government was extending large-scale bank linkage loans to women’s Self-Help Groups to strengthen their financial position. During 2026-27, the target was to provide ₹610.72 crore in bank linkage loans to 12,000 SHGs. So far, 1,819 groups had received ₹145.62 crore.

Twenty buses had been purchased at a cost of ₹7.20 crore and handed over to TGSRTC for 20 mandal-level federations in Medak district. Each mandal federation was expected to earn approximately ₹69,468 per month through the buses.

A total of ₹39.10 crore had been allocated for the construction of 391 Indiramma Mahila Shakti Bhavans in the district, at ₹10 lakh per building. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had virtually laid the foundation for the works on June 25.

Under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, ₹98.51 crore had been sanctioned for 1,086 works in Medak district. Of these, 271 works had been completed and 438 were in progress.

Tourism Development

The Government was giving special attention to tourism development in Medak district. The Tourism Department had sanctioned ₹7 crore for accommodation facilities at the Edupayala Vanadurga temple, while ₹57 lakh had been allocated for the restoration of Medak Fort.

Medak was the only district in the State where a dedicated Tourism Development Committee had been constituted.

Employment and Skill Development

Minister Vivek Venkatswamy said Advanced Technology Centres (ATCs) were being established in Medak under the Labour, Employment and Training Department. Training courses were being designed in line with the skill requirements of modern industries.

He said young people were being trained through TOMCOM to access employment opportunities both in India and abroad. Skilled workers in countries such as Germany and Japan could earn more than ₹25 lakh a year, he said, and called upon the youth of Medak district to make use of the international employment opportunities available through the State’s skill-development initiatives.

Appreciation for Police Department

The Minister congratulated the police department for its efforts in maintaining law and order, controlling crime, preventing road accidents, curbing drug abuse and combating cybercrime. He appreciated the services being rendered by police personnel for the safety and security of the public.

People-Centric Governance

Minister Vivek said the Government had conducted the ‘Praja Palana–Pragathi Pranalika’ programme for 99 days with the objective of ensuring that welfare and development schemes translated into visible improvements in people’s lives rather than remaining confined to paper.

He said priority was given to resolving public grievances through coordination among all departments from the village to the State level.

The Minister appreciated officials, employees, public representatives and media personnel for taking the Government’s welfare and development programmes to the people. He called upon everyone to work collectively to make Medak district a leader in all sectors.

He urged people to follow the path shown by the freedom fighters and work towards taking development and welfare forward in accordance with public aspirations. He called for collective participation in the effort to make Telangana a leading State in India and a globally recognised State by 2047.

On the occasion, the Minister presented medals and certificates of appreciation to district officials and police personnel who had demonstrated outstanding performance.

District Collector Pratima Singh, Superintendent of Police Srinivasa Rao, Medak MLA Mynampally Rohith, other public representatives, district officials, police officers, employees, students and members of the public attended the programme.