HYDERABAD: Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao (KCR) on Sunday has assured that all measures to protect and support the Telugu film industry would be taken as the sector and workers dependent on it suffered losses due to stoppage of film shootings, closure of theatres in view of COVID-19 pandemic. Noting that COVID-19 affected the film industry as it did to other sectors, he said we will take all the necessary steps. "We will include in the TRS (party's) GHMC poll manifesto about the measures we will take for the benefit of the film industry," the CM assured.

He said that the government would provide subsidies and exemptions to recover from the damages caused. KCR held a meeting with the film industry representatives who raised the problems faced by them and the losses incurred by the industry due to the pandemic and urged him to extend support, for which he positively responded, an official release said on Sunday.

"The state government has taken several steps to attract industries to the state. Will the government remain silent when an existing industry is in trouble? Hyderabad is the centre of a very large film industry like in Chennai. Lakhs of people are employed in the industry and they are dependent on it," KCR said in the release.

Present in the meeting were actors Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna, producer C Kalyan and others from the Telugu film fraternity.

తెలుగు సినీ పరిశ్రమను కాపాడుకోవడానికి అవసరమైన అన్ని చర్యలు తీసుకుంటామని. కోవిడ్ కారణంగా షూటింగులు ఆగిపోయి, థియేటర్లు మూసి వేయడం వల్ల పరిశ్రమకు, కార్మికులకు జరిగిన నష్టం నుంచి కోలుకోవడానికి ప్రభుత్వ పరంగా రాయితీలు, మినహాయింపులు ఇవ్వనున్నట్లు సీఎం శ్రీ కేసీఆర్ ప్రకటించారు. pic.twitter.com/wkZZUYT3AZ
— Telangana CMO (@TelanganaCMO) November 22, 2020