VIJAYAWADA: With elections fast approaching, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy is concentrating on swift completion of five lakh houses under the government’s Navaratnalu-Pedalandariki Illu flagship scheme and handing them over to beneficiaries before the polls.
Having handed over 7.50 lakh houses in the first tranche, he is now keen on distributing five lakh houses in the second tranche.
The recent election results in Telangana, where Congress dethroned BRS, and Karnataka earlier, showed the ‘make or break’ importance of welfare schemes during elections.
Jagan Mohan Reddy has drawn up various strategies to win over the people in the 2024 Kurukshetra. The Pedalandariki Illu mega housing programme is a step in that very direction. It will help attract nearly crore voters linked to 30 lakh housing beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, political observers point out that N. Chandrababu Naidu after winning the elections in 2014 did not implement most of his poll promises, which resulted in his ouster.
Noticing the trend, Jagan Mohan Reddy started implementing Navaratnalu welfare schemes, including during the pandemic. The two-phase mega housing programme comprises completion and distribution of 16 lakh houses in each phase. The Chief Minister is frequently reviewing progress and status of the housing programme, which could tilt the scales in YSRC favour if it is completed in the next two months.
According to data, out of five lakh houses, construction of 1,15,334 houses has been completed and 3,84,666 are under progress. They are progressing at a brisk pace in Nellore, YSR Kadapa, Annamayya, Visakhapatnam, Chittoor, Tirupati, Anakapalli and Kakinada districts.
Senior political analysts say that as most of the houses in the name of women, completion of those houses was mandatory to win over their votes. The mega housing programme would have a huge impact on next year’s ‘Big Battle’.
Special chief secretary Ajay Jain said that they are reviewing the programme’s progress on an everyday basis. He was hopeful of fulfilling the Chief Minister’s dream.
Minister for housing Jogi Ramesh was optimistic of meeting the target before elections.
