Bhatti Vikramarka offers probe into Singareni tenders since 2014
HYDERABAD: Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka on Saturday said the Telangana government was ready to order an inquiry into all Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) tender allocations made since the formation of the state in 2014.
Addressing the media at Praja Bhavan along with Minister Jupally Krishna Rao, Bhatti said that if Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader Harish Rao writes to him, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) will be constituted, if required, to probe the matter. He added that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy would be briefed once he returns from his Davos visit.
Site visit rule introduced under BRS rule
Refuting allegations that the Congress government introduced the site visit certificate condition to favour select contractors, Bhatti said the rule had been in force since 2018, during the BRS regime. He said Harish Rao’s claim that the Congress was “looting” Singareni tenders by enforcing the condition was misleading.
Bhatti said that during the BRS tenure, 20 overburden (OB) removal tenders were allotted, while only five were awarded under the Congress government so far. Of these five, four went to companies linked to BRS leaders, he alleged.
He said similar site visit conditions existed in tender notifications of other states and central public sector undertakings as well. The condition, he said, was incorporated in line with guidelines issued by the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute in 2016, 2021 and 2023.
Explaining why the Naini OC tender notification was cancelled, Bhatti said it was withdrawn immediately after allegations surfaced to prevent speculation before the facts were fully known.
No link between CM and Srujan Reddy
Responding to allegations that tenders were being cornered by Srujan Reddy, whom Harish Rao described as a relative of the chief minister, Bhatti said Srujan Reddy was the son-in-law of former BRS MLA Kandala Upender Reddy.
He said Shoda Constructions Private Limited was headed by Deepti Reddy as managing director, who is Upender Reddy’s daughter and Srujan Reddy’s wife. Bhatti said Upender Reddy had won as an MLA on a Congress ticket in 2018 but was later lured into the BRS with promises of contracts and tenders, and continues to remain in the BRS.
“What connection does Chief Minister Revanth Reddy have with this?” Bhatti asked.
Details of tenders allotted
Bhatti said that since the site visit certificate was made mandatory, Singareni tenders were awarded to only four companies.
Shoda Constructions was awarded the VK OC Mine-1 contract. The Mandamarri Kalyanikhani OC contract was given in May 2025 to Expressway RVS&R Company, whose managing director is Dikshit Rao. The RB OC-2 extension project was awarded in July 2025 to CCS Engineering Private Limited, whose directors include Nishant Rao, son of former BRS MLC Sudhakar Rao, and Madan Mohan Rao.
For the SRP OC-2 project, 12 bidders participated, and the contract went to Harsha Constructions Private Limited. Bhatti said the company’s past record and associations during the BRS regime were well known.
He said that if tenders were being manipulated to favour select firms, these companies would not have secured them. He accused Harish Rao of harming Singareni and misleading the public by writing letters seeking inquiries despite what he described as transparent tendering.
Diesel procurement policy changed under BRS
Responding to allegations that Singareni stopped buying diesel from Indian Oil Corporation and handed procurement to private contractors, Bhatti said the system of Singareni supplying diesel to contractor-operated vehicles did not exist elsewhere in the country.
He said a major diesel scam had occurred earlier, and details of those accused would be revealed later. The diesel supply norms for overburden removal work at Naini mine were changed during the BRS regime, making contractors bear diesel costs, in line with national practices.
‘Do not poison Singareni for politics’
Bhatti said Telangana needed to increase coal production and open new quality mines, warning that no new mines had been developed over the past decade. Declining production, he said, could reduce revenues and threaten the livelihoods of families dependent on Singareni.
He cautioned against targeting Singareni for political or personal gains and said his doors were always open to clarify doubts. “Ask anything, anytime. I am ready to answer,” he said.
