CM Naidu Says Top Priority for Welfare, Development, Good Governance

 Vijayawada: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has said the government is according top priority to three fields - welfare, development and good governance.

Participating in a review meeting with the ministers and secretaries at the Secretariat on Monday, he said the various works being taken up by the government needed to be assessed at the field level on a regular basis. This, he said, would help realise whether the benefits were reaching the targeted people.

Naidu said, “We hold cabinet meetings twice every month and are giving clearances for various projects through the state investment promotion board. The in-charge ministers and district collectors must ensure the works are properly implemented at the field level.”

The Chief Minister also asked them to assess the implementation of the schemes that were taken up in the last 19 months and check how the use of AI applications was ensured.

He said the foundation was recently laid for the Amaravati Quantum Valley and “we are going to manufacture products and export them soon.”

On welfare schemes and developmental works, Naidu said the Super Six scheme was a major hit while an amount of Rs 10,000 crore was remitted in the banks accounts of mothers under Thalliki Vandanam scheme to enable their wards to pursue education.

Under the Stree Shakti scheme, nearly 4.29 crore women availed the free travel scheme in RTC buses and the occupancy ratio had gone up in the RTC buses.

Under the Annadata Sukhibava scheme, a financial aid worth Rs 6,310 crore was given to farmers. “We are promoting Rayalaseema region as a horticulture hub and giving a major boost to the aquaculture in coastal AP,” he said, and maintained that they were taking all steps to ensure no farmer died by suicide. In case any such deaths occurred, the government would take up a study to find out the reasons and support the farmers.

Naidu said that under the Deepam scheme 2.0, the government gave away two crore domestic gas refills in the state. Under the NTR Bharosa pension scheme, pensions worth Rs 58,000 crore were given so far.

He said, “Any discussion on the need to provide welfare schemes is inappropriate. To support the poor, these are a must.”

On crops, he said the state provided Rs 1,100 crore for taking up market intervention for certain crops.

Naidu said that data centres with a total capacity of five gigawatts were coming up while an action plan began for manufacture of green ammonia at Kakinada. He claimed credit for bringing in reforms in the power sector, wherein “the situation has come to true down from levying true up charges on the consumers.”

He said the government took up road repair works that cost Rs 1,000 crore and was spending an additional Rs 3,000 crore to lay the roads. Under the Palle Panduga scheme, the state earmarked Rs 4,000 crore to develop the rural areas.

Maintaining that AP has realised a 9.88 per cent growth rate for the economy, Naidu wished for the growth rate to be in the double digit. “We have fixed certain benchmarks to see that the per capita income would go up.”

The Chief Minister reiterated the government’s commitment to complete the execution of Polavaram irrigation project and dedicate it to the nation by commencement of Godavari Pushkaralu in June, 2027.