VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy is laying special stress on strengthening the YSR Congress in Visakhapatnam, which was a bastion to the opposition Telugu Desam in the past elections.
This push is seen in the context of the present government proposal to make Vizag the Executive Capital or seat of power. The chief minister conducted a review meeting here on Tuesday and interacted with party activists of Visakhapatnam North assembly constituency.
Notably, despite the landslide victory for the YSRC in the 2019 elections, the opposition TD won all the four MLA seats in Vizag’s North, South, East and West constituencies. The TD used its hold among the elite urban voters, which helped it to win all four urban seats.
Later, Vizag South TD MLA Vasupalli Ganesh shifted his loyalty to the YSRC in 2020. The ruling party now put its concentration on Vizag, under which it is readying its rank and file to win the hearts of Vizagites.
This is crucial and mandatory in view of the CM’s plan to make Visakhapatnam the executive capital and shifting of the CM’s and the state government’s power base to Vizag.
Jagan Reddy, interacting with Vizag North constituency party leaders and activists, told them to prepare for the polls by taking forward the good work done by his government during the past over three years. He cited the developmental initiatives and implementation of welfare schemes in the constituency.
The CM stressed on the role of party activists in conducting door-to-door campaigns for the government in each and every ward and reaching up to every home.
Reiterating that 98 per cent of the promises made in the manifesto were implemented, the CM said the party cadre should reach out to the people and strive for achieving the goal of a total sweep, winning 175 seats. “Visakhapatnam is our largest city. Even in the North Visakhapatnam constituency, schemes have been implemented in three-fourth of the houses,” he said.
He said that about 80,000 out of the 1.05 lakh houses in the Vizag North assembly segment have benefited from the state government’s schemes in a transparent manner. “There is hardly 16 months’ time for the next elections. Don’t think we have plenty of time. This much time is essential to meet every person in each constituency.”
The chief minister asked the party rank and file to talk to every person and try resolving their problems.
He said that while participating in the door-to-door programmes, the activists should “identify the people in each ward who are not getting benefits of the welfare schemes even as they are eligible and ensure the benefits reached them too.”
YSRC’s Visakhapatnam district president Mutthamsetty Srinivasa Rao, Visakhapatnam North constituency coordinator KK Raju, other leaders and activists participated in the meeting.
