Hyderabad: Former minister and BRS Legislature Party deputy floor leader T. Harish Rao demanded the immediate cancellation of Telangana hostel supply tenders for essential commodities. The contracts cover government residential schools and welfare hostels. He alleged that the Congress government’s centralised procurement system threatened thousands of local vendors and their families.
Representatives of the Telangana Gurukulam Contractors Association met Harish Rao at his Hyderabad residence. They expressed concern that the Project Management Unit (PMU) system would hurt local suppliers’ livelihoods.
Speaking to the media, Harish Rao alleged irregularities in the ₹800 crore tender process. He accused the government of favouring Nacof despite its alleged record of blacklisting and forfeiture of a ₹65 crore deposit in Odisha, Jharkhand and Telangana Civil Supplies.
Harish Rao also alleged that the contractor had awarded subcontracts to 12 parties in violation of rules. He claimed the arrangement involved goodwill payments of ₹2 crore per district, totalling ₹66 crore. He further alleged that officials or others involved collected monthly commissions of 20% on bills.
Telangana hostel supply tenders face questions over prices and delivery
Harish Rao questioned the adoption of a procurement model that, he said, had failed in Andhra Pradesh. According to him, authorities scrapped the system there within three months.
He alleged that the Telangana contracts carried prices 35% to 45% above local market rates. Despite the higher prices, he claimed, the contractor had failed to supply essential commodities properly to 4,000 hostels.
The BRS leader criticised the government over these alleged delivery failures. He demanded a return to the previous procurement system, with each school treated as an independent purchasing unit.
Under his proposal, District Purchase Committees (DPCs) would handle procurement and assign supply responsibilities to local vendors. Harish Rao argued that this approach would support small businesses. He also said it would help hostels obtain fresh, quality supplies for students.
He maintained that the centralised system threatened both student welfare and local traders’ livelihoods. Harish Rao urged the government to withdraw the PMU tenders and restore local procurement.
The BRS leader warned that his party would launch a large-scale protest if the government refused to reverse its decision. He demanded the immediate cancellation of the Telangana hostel supply tenders and a return to district-level purchasing.