Modi announces Turmeric Board, Tribal University for Telangana

MAHABUBNAGAR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced that the National Turmeric Board and a Tribal University will be set up in Telangana.

He made the announcements after laying foundation stone and dedicating to the nation multiple developmental projects worth more than Rs 13,500 crore in Telangana at an official event held here.

Meeting long-pending demand, he announced that National Turmeric Board will be set up in Telangana to professionally focus on the entire value chain of turmeric.

“National Turmeric Board will help farmers in the entire supply chain from value addition to infrastructure,” he said.

He noted that after Covid-19 pandemic awareness about turmeric has increased and turmeric’s demand has also gone up across the world.

Modi’s announcement comes amid the criticism of BJP by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) for going back on its promise.

During 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP candidate in Nizamabad constituency D. Arvind had promised to get the Turmeric Board within 5 days of winning the election.

Arvind, who had defeated BRS leader and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter K. Kavitha in Nizamabad, had made the promise in writing and even signed it with a non-judicial (bond) stamp.

The BRS has stepped up attack on BJP after the Centre categorically told the Parliament in March this year that there is no proposal to establish a Turmeric Board or any other spice-specific Board in the country.

In another major announcement, the Prime Minister said a tribal university will be set up in Mulugu.

The tribal university will be named after tribal deities Sammakka and Sarakka. He announced that Rs 900 crore will be spent on Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University.

The tribal university was one of the commitments made to Telangana in Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014. BRS had been targeting BJP for not fulfilling the commitment.

Modi, who laid the foundation stone for a couple of road projects as part of Nagpur-Vijayawada economic corridor, said this corridor will promote trade, tourism and industry in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra.

He said as part of the economic corridor, economic hubs have been identified. These include a special economic zone, five mega food parks, four fishing seafood clusters, three pharma and medical clusters and one textile park.

Modi said as a result of this youth in Hanamkonda, Warangal, Mahabubabad and Khammam districts will get huge employment opportunities and help farmers in value addition.

The Prime Minister said a landlocked state like Telangana needs road and rail connectivity so that goods manufactured in the state are shipped to sea ports for exports.

He noted that several corridors are passing through Telangana. These corridors will connect east and west coasts. He said the Khammam-Suryapet section of Hyderabad-Visakhapatnam corridor will also play a key role in accessing the east coast and bringing down the logistic cost of industry and business.