Telangana taking steps to lead the pack of cashless states:Guv

The Telangana government is pooling resources and making efforts to make the state a leader in the country in cashless transactions post demonetisation, Governor ESL Narasimhan said here today.
"Siddipet Assembly Constituency has been taken up as a pilot project in this regard. Ibrahimpur village in the said constituency has achieved the distinction of being the first village to go cashless in toto," he said in his Republic Day speech at the Parade Ground here.
Noting that the state has achieved first position in Ease of Doing business rankings conducted by the Centre and World Bank, he said the Telangana Industrial Project Approval and Self-Certification System (TS-iPASS) has attracted susbtantial investments into the state.

"Nearly 3000 industries have been clearances with an investment of Rs 50,000 crore to create about two lakh jobs," he said.
The growth in IT sector is 16 per cent, which is three per cent higher than the national growth average, he said.
"The much-awaited (Hyderabad) Metro Rail is expected to go operational this year, Narasimhan said.

The government has announced that it would take steps to provide reservations to Scheduled Tribes and Muslims in proportion to their population, the Governor said.
Observing that the state government is implementing several policies and programmes for the welfare of minorities, he said, "a Special IT SEZ is also being launched in Hyderabad exclusively for the minority industrialists."

"In a path-breaking effort, my government is taking steps to develop Yadadri, Vemulawada, Jogulamba, Bhadradri, Dharmapuri, Basara temples in a big way to transform these places into major pilgrimage centres," he added.