BRS MLA and former Minister T Harish Rao has strongly criticized the Congress-led government in Telangana for the ongoing drinking water crisis, accusing it of negligence and poor governance. In a post on social media platform X, Harish Rao claimed that mismanagement of water resources has triggered an artificial drought in the state. He pointed out that scenes of people queuing with pots and drums for water at public taps, community wells, and tankers are reminiscent of the past, before the implementation of Mission Bhagiratha during the BRS regime. He accused Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy of failing to maintain the drinking water infrastructure built under K Chandrashekhar Rao’s leadership.

According to Harish Rao, the crisis extends beyond drinking water to agricultural irrigation as well, with fields drying up due to insufficient water supply. He alleged that the current administration failed to conserve water from rivers during crucial periods, leading to empty reservoirs and declining groundwater levels. He further stated that Mission Bhagiratha, once praised for providing tap water to every household, is now being poorly managed and underutilized. The former minister emphasized that this is not a natural drought but a man-made one, resulting from administrative apathy and a lack of planning.

Harish Rao urged the Chief Minister and his Cabinet to stop misleading the public and instead take urgent steps to restore water supply across the state. He asserted that the Congress government’s inability to address the crisis is dragging Telangana backwards. Highlighting the dire conditions in rural areas, he mentioned instances like women in Narayankhed’s Sheri Thanda being forced to walk two kilometers for water. He concluded by warning that without immediate corrective measures, the situation could worsen, affecting both livelihoods and public health across the region.