As Telangana, which is currently governed by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), nears its polling date on November 30, here is a detailed look at how the state is performing across various key sectors including healthcare, education and employment.
Healthcare
The Telangana government has under its umbrella a plethora of initiatives and schemes to address key health issues faced by people in the state. The state’s health department, currently headed by T Harish Rao, has seen significant development over the years since its formation.
The state has adopted a 5-tier system instead of a 3-tier healthcare system. An amount of Rs 10,954 crore has been allocated for Medical and Public Health during the 2022-23 budget. Out of this, Rs 822 crore was allocated for the National Health Mission to widen the coverage of healthcare services and improve the infrastructure of existing medical centres.
Telangana has also been climbing the ranks quickly on the NITI Aayog Health Index. The state moved to 3rd rank in 2019-20 from 11th rank in 2015-16. The state’s health sector has, over the years, received accolades for the way it handles issues faced by the public.
Another notable area in the healthcare sector is the KCR Kit Scheme for pregnant women who give birth at a government hospital. The scheme, launched on June 2, 2017, aims to bring down the infant mortality rate and female feticide by providing financial assistance of Rs 12,000 to pregnant women in three phases. If the newborn is a girl, an additional amount of Rs 1,000 is also given to the family. Pregnant women can avail this scheme for a maximum of 2 deliveries. The additional kit provided contains all the basic necessities required to take care of a newborn.
Education
The total number of schools in the state went up to 41,369 in 2021-22 from 40,821 in 2015-16. However, the budgetary allocations for the sector have seen a drastic fall year after year since BRS government assumed power in 2014. A total of Rs 19,093 crore has been allocated for education sector in this year’s state budget. The state spent only 6.24 per cent of its total budget on education in 2022-23 fiscal. This ranges way lower than the all-India average allocation of 15.2 per cent.
The literacy rate of Telangana stands at 66.54 per cent which is lower than the national average.
The government in January 2022 launched the Mana Ooru-Mana Badi/Mana Basti-Mana Badi scheme to improve the infrastructure of nearly 26,065 government schools. It has also directed all government schools to take up English as medium of instruction from the academic year 2022-23.
Employment
The state, which claims to have seen an increase in investments and employment opportunities, witnessed an 8.2 per cent decline in the urban unemployment rate as per the current weekly status between the October-December 2020 quarter and the July-September 2022 quarter.
The IT exports from the state experienced a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15.67 per cent between 2014-15 and 2021-22. The total employment in the IT sector grew exponentially from nearly 3.7 lakh to 7.7 lakh during this period.
Agriculture remains the largest employer in the state, however, helping around 45.8 per cent of working adults earn a living. The services sector falls next on the list and employs a third of all workers in the state.
With the parties in the fray going about announcing various schemes as part of their poll promises, it remains to be seen which side the verdict of the people will favour.
(Based on Telangana Socio Economic Outlook 2023)