Kavitha lays out agenda for TRS, blueprint includes free education and healthcare

Hyderabad: Interacting with journalists at the Press Club in Hyderabad on Saturday, Kalvakuntla Kavitha said she had a five-pronged strategy called ‘Panchanjanyam' for Telangana and her newly-formed party, Telangana Rakshana Sena (TRS). The blueprint included free education for all, providing loans ranging from ₹2 lakh to ₹20 crore to youth and having special targeted initiatives for groups like those who were part of the Telangana movement and senior citizens.She also said that her outfit would be ideologically independent. She clarified that while she respected her father and former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, she differed with the BRS leadership on past failures in irrigation (Krishna/Godavari waters) and paper leaks during govt recruitment.Kavitha insisted that her TRS - Telangana Rakshana Sena - would function as a political platform, while Telangana Jagruthi would continue its work as an NGO. "The party aims to be cadre-based rather than leader-based, with committees established at every polling booth to stay connected with the people," she said.She added that her party would pledge to provide free education from primary schooling to professional courses like medicine and engineering, even for those studying in private institutions. "We promise that if we form the next govt we will bear the full cost of medical treatment for any citizen, regardless of the hospital (government or corporate) or the severity of the illness," she said."The focus will also be on protecting the self-respect of farmers, ensuring timely procurement of crops at fair prices, providing fertilisers on time, and exploring rice exports through a dedicated corporation." Besides giving loans to youth, she said her party would be committed to a single notification for 4 lakh govt jobs, including filling long-pending SC/ST backlog posts and hiring 2 lakh teachers.She also said she would ensure that at least 33% of party tickets would go to women, with an aim to reach 50% where possible. She criticised the Congress govt for failing to spend allocated welfare funds for dalits and BCs. Speaking on federalism, she proposed that the Rajya Sabha should have powers similar to the US Senate, where every state has a fixed number of representatives and equal voting rights to protect state interests against central overreach.