Naidu Seeks Good Majority For NDA In Local Body Polls
Naidu said he had been making all-out efforts to ensure welfare, development and good governance since the alliance assumed power in 2024.
Vijayawada: Telugu Desam national president and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has urged people to support the NDA in the upcoming local body elections in Andhra Pradesh and vote in favour of the alliance, as they did in the 2024 elections.
Naidu noted that the TD-led alliance won the 2024 Assembly elections with a strike rate of 94 per cent and a vote share of 57 per cent. He urged people to remain cautious about the YSR Congress and protect democracy, accusing the opposition party of perpetrating violence.
Addressing the media on Monday, Naidu said he had been making all-out efforts to ensure welfare, development and good governance since the alliance assumed power in 2024.
“We have spent ₹1.50 lakh crore on welfare, including ₹76,000 crore on welfare pensions alone. Senior citizens receiving a monthly pension of ₹4,000 are gaining self-respect and have become contributors to their families’ incomes,” he said.
He said the government was providing social security pensions worth ₹36,000 a year and described the scheme as the world’s largest direct benefit transfer (DBT) programme.
Naidu listed schemes such as Super Six, Thalliki Vandanam, Annadata Sukhibhava, Stree Shakti and Deepam, saying they were intended to improve people's lives.
“I have been reviewing the implementation of welfare schemes and development works constituency-wise through the Real-Time Governance Society (RTGS) and an interactive voice response system (IVRS), while holding officials accountable for lapses. We are handling El Niño efficiently and ensuring a planned supply of drinking water. I am using technology to improve people's lives,” he said.
Naidu said the government was working towards providing a tap connection to every household and promoting artificial intelligence, information technology, data centres and green energy to restore Andhra Pradesh's lost brand image.
“We are moving towards direct elections for the benefit of the people. I wish Andhra Pradesh to become India's No. 1 state soon,” he said.
The Chief Minister claimed that the state had attracted investments worth ₹22 lakh crore, with a commitment to generate 20 lakh jobs. He also dismissed the alleged misinformation campaign surrounding the Mega DSC-2025 recruitment process, saying that truth had prevailed.
Naidu said Rayalaseema was emerging as a knowledge economy and a global horticulture hub, with an investment plan worth ₹1 lakh crore. The region was also developing as a green energy hub, while Jonnagiri village was gaining prominence through gold mining, he added.
Criticising the previous YSR Congress government over the execution of the Polavaram irrigation project, Naidu alleged that its failures had led to the diaphragm wall being washed away in the Godavari river. He said work had progressed rapidly since his government assumed office and that all works, including land acquisition and rehabilitation and resettlement, would be completed by March 2027.
Naidu also expressed confidence in the proposed interlinking of five rivers, connecting the Godavari with the Cauvery, saying it would benefit four southern states by improving water availability for drinking and irrigation. He outlined the development of Amaravati as the state capital and criticised the previous government’s three-capitals proposal, accusing it of creating confusion among the people.
Explaining the selection of candidates for the local body elections, Naidu said the alliance had adopted social engineering to reflect public preferences and ensure representation for different communities.
“BCs, SCs, STs and minorities have been allocated 63.6 per cent of the seats. BCs alone account for more than 35 per cent,” he said, adding that the candidates included educated individuals, youth, women and loyal party workers.
Naidu accused the YSR Congress of having a culture of violence and criminality, claiming that its leaders had failed to learn lessons despite the party being reduced to 11 Assembly seats in the 2024 elections.
He targeted YSRC president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy over his stay in Bengaluru and accused him of running what he described as a mafia. Naidu also criticised Jagan for visiting the party office in Tadepalli, addressing the media and subsequently meeting the State Election Commissioner, alleging that he had violated established norms.
The Chief Minister further accused the YSRC of resorting to violence, drawing comparisons with the criminal activities of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
“The next 20 years are going to be inspiring. Andhra Pradesh will become the number one state. Let us save the state from rowdyism. We will not allow ‘rafa-rafa’ politics here. I have never resorted to violence in my political life, nor have I feared anyone,” Naidu said.
He claimed that Andhra Pradesh had remained peaceful over the past two-and-a-half years but expressed concern over recent incidents of political violence. He also accused the YSRC of using Gen Z as pawns to perpetrate violence.
Naidu criticised the previous YSRC government for allegedly encouraging unanimous elections in local bodies. He claimed that in 2014, voting in the MPTC and ZPTC elections was recorded at only 2% and 0.09%, respectively.