Telangana Rakshana Samiti (TRS) chief K. Kavitha speaking during the Telangana Electricity Regulatory Commission (TGERC) public hearing in Hyderabad on the Telangana government’s proposed Telangana Rythu Power Distribution Company Limited (TGRPDL), also known as the “Rythu Discom” in Hyderabad on Friday (May 29, 2026)
| Photo Credit: SIDDHANT THAKUR
Telangana Rakshna Sena (TRS) chief Kalvakuntla Kavitha opposed the Telangana government’s proposal to establish a separate Telangana Rythu Power Distribution Company Limited (TGRPDCL or ‘Rythu Discom’), alleging that the move was a conspiracy against the farming community and would severely damage the State’s agricultural sector.The TRS leader demanded that the government first conduct a pilot project before implementing the proposal across the State, and sought an all-party meeting to discuss the issue in detail.Speaking at a public hearing on the proposed Rythu (Farmer) Discom before the Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC) in Hyderabad on Friday (May 29, 2026), she said the proposal was equivalent to “poisoning agriculture” and warned the government against repeating incidents similar to the 1999 firing on farmers.Ms. Kavitha further alleged that the proposal was indirectly paving the way for installation of electricity meters to agricultural pump sets in line with Central government conditions.She questioned why the government had kept the proposal secret for six months if it was genuinely beneficial to farmers. “Had this been a pro-farmer decision, the government would have discussed it openly in the Assembly and clarified doubts among farmers,” she said.Ms. Kavitha demanded that public hearings on the issue be conducted in all 33 districts of Telangana alleging that the government’s intentions appeared suspicious and accused it of attempting to shift the burden of losses in power distribution companies onto farmers.Recalling the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government’s initiatives, Ms. Kavitha said former Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao had invested nearly ₹1 lakh crore in the power sector, ensuring round-the-clock electricity supply and enabling Telangana farmers to rely on borewells for irrigation.She noted that the State’s paddy production had increased from 20 lakh tonnes to nearly 1.4 crore tonnes due to borewells and despite the Kaleshwaram project and the Palamuru-Rangaredy Lift Irrigation Scheme (PRLIS) contributing nothing notable.She claimed that the proposed Rythu (Farmer) Discom would place the future of nearly 29 lakh agricultural borewell motors in uncertainty. According to her, the discoms were already burdened with debts and losses running into thousands of crores. The total losses of discoms stood at ₹69,000 crore and nearly ₹54,000 crore was due from the government itself.She also raised concerns over manpower allocation in the proposed utility, alleging that only around 2,000 employees would be transferred despite discoms having nearly 45,000 staff members. She alleged that employees from Andhra Pradesh continued to dominate Telangana discoms despite the State’s own employees struggling for promotions and opportunities. Published - May 29, 2026 03:31 pm IST
