Naidu’s Call For Clean Villages, Full Use of Central Funds
Naidu stressed improving welfare hostels through “net zero” policies and directed officials to provide specialised coaching for SC and ST students to secure IIT admissions
VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday directed officials to transform villages across Andhra Pradesh into “clean villages” with safe drinking water, sanitation systems, gas connections, streetlights and cement roads.
“You must ensure full utilisation of central funds and faster implementation of welfare schemes,” he said at the seventh district collectors’ conference at the state secretariat.
Naidu announced that `286 crore under the Matsyakarula Sevalo programme would be distributed on May 19.
Reviewing matters related to social welfare, revenue and centrally-sponsored schemes, he said rural infrastructure, financial discipline and efficient governance should remain the administration’s key priorities.
District collectors must focus on providing safe drinking water under the Jal Jeevan Mission, strengthening sanitation systems and improving civic amenities in villages to ensure sustainable development and better living standards, he said.
The CM also issued a stern directive to officials to ensure that no 22A land applications remained pending. They must be cleared well before they turn up for the next collectors’ meet.
Observing that the revenue department had become the “largest litigant” in land disputes, he said over four lakh land-related cases were pending across the state.
Naidu announced that postings for district revenue officers and revenue divisional officers would be issued shortly. “We must expedite construction of district offices. Also, complete the ongoing land re-survey process by March 2027 and ensure pattadar passbooks are issued to eligible landowners,” he told the collectors.
Highlighting the state’s fiscal constraints, the CM said departments should not compromise on the utilisation of central funds given to AP. They must fully spend the sanctioned funds from the very first quarter of the financial year.
He asked various departments to secure additional allocations from Delhi and maintain quarterly expenditure targets of around `8,000 crore.
The CM directed the health department to ensure Andhra Pradesh received its full share of central funds. Officials must explore NITI Aayog support under Viability Gap Funding for public-private partnership projects.
Reviewing welfare programmes, the CM said subsidy amounts under Deepam 2.0 should be credited to beneficiaries on fixed dates without delay.
Officials informed the meeting that `3,504 crore had already been spent under the scheme, benefiting 1.08 crore people.
On the Stree Shakti free bus travel initiative for women, Naidu said 60.6 crore trips had been recorded so far, with the government spending nearly "1,940 crore annually on the programme. He added that the “Talliki Vandanam” scheme would provide assistance worth `10,000 crore to nearly 67 lakh beneficiaries.
The CM said electric buses should operate in Amaravati, Visakhapatnam and Tirupati, while dedicated EV connectivity should be developed in the Vijayawada-Guntur-Amaravati region and other major urban clusters.
Calling solar energy a “game changer” for Andhra Pradesh, he said subsidised rooftop solar systems were being provided to SC, ST and BC communities to reduce power costs and promote clean energy adoption.
Naidu stressed improving welfare hostels through “net zero” policies and directed officials to provide specialised coaching for SC and ST students to secure IIT admissions. “We must promote coffee, turmeric and saffron cultivation in tribal areas with value-addition facilities,” he said, and emphasised transforming Araku Coffee into a global brand linked with tourism and exports.
