UDAYAGIRI: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said the State government was accelerating rural development through welfare, development and good governance, claiming that the NDA alliance government had fulfilled the trust reposed in it by the people in the 2024 elections.
Addressing the Palle Panduga- 3.0 programme at Udayagiri in Nellore district alongside Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan, Naidu praised the Deputy CM for his efforts to strengthen rural infrastructure and noted that three editions of Palle Panduga had been successfully organised under his leadership.
He said village development works were being taken up at ‘jet speed’ with the support of the Centre, pointing out that Gram Sabhas were conducted simultaneously in all 13,326 villages across the State to identify development priorities.
The Chief Minister announced that 10,000 Panchayat Raj employees in various cadres had been given promotions after nearly two-and-a-half decades. He said `4,136 crore in 15th Finance Commission funds had been released, more than one lakh farm ponds dug and water troughs constructed for cattle.
Highlighting the scale of State-wide works under Palle Panduga 3.0, Naidu detailed a `11,085-crore rural package comprising 6,000 km of CC roads, 9,500 km of BT roads, 22,000 mini Gokulams and 1,000 km of magic drains. Contrasting the coalition government’s record with that of the previous YSRCP regime, Naidu said the current administration had completed 6,500 km of CC roads in just two years, compared with 880 km in five years under the previous government, despite inheriting a `10 lakh crore debt burden.
Naidu announced that the foundation stone for the Rayalaseema Horticulture Hub would be laid on October 2 in the presence of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while the foundation stone for three lakh houses would be laid on October 4 under the leadership of Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
Furthermore, 28,000 housesite pattas were recently distributed in Visakhapatnam, with another 24,000 beneficiaries set to receive pattas in Vijayawada under the ‘Mee Illu- Mee Hakku’ initiative. For the Udayagiri constituency and neighbouring areas, Naidu approved a comprehensive water security package. This includes `100 crore for safe drinking water in 189 fluoride- affected villages of Kanigiri, `52 crore for 381 works under the Sujala Sravanthi scheme covering eight mandals, `85 crore for Phase I of the Somasila High-Level Canal and `52.52 crore for the Peddireddypalli Reservoir Canal to irrigate 65,000 acres.
Dedicated allocations were also made for Somasila Dam safety, the Krakaturoo Distributary and the Rajavolu Lift Irrigation Scheme. Drinking water issues in Oletivaripalem, Gudluru and Lingasamudram mandals will be addressed through the Rallapadu Reservoir, alongside the expedited completion of Veligonda Phase II on a priority basis. Naidu also cleared a Defence Manufacturing Hub, uninterrupted power supply for a CBG plant and an IIIT in Kanigiri- Ballipalle.
He warned that any attempt by opposition elements to impede State development would be dealt with firmly. Elaborating on the rural transformation being driven by his department, Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan said development under the NDA alliance focused on ensuring lastmile connectivity for marginalised communities. He revealed that more than 1,500 km of roads had been laid in remote tribal habitations under the Adavi Tallibata initiative, including 111.4 km of roads connecting 167 previously unlinked tribal settlements inhabited by communities such as Banjara, Yanadi and Erukula.
Pawan Kalyan announced a dedicated pilot programme to upgrade rural ‘donka’ (field) roads across 161 rural constituencies. He said more than `520 crore worth of Palle Panduga works were currently under way across SPS Nellore district alone. Focusing on local infrastructure in Udayagiri, Pawan Kalyan said `121 crore had been spent on 115 km of CC and BT roads, more than 1,200 water ponds, 348 mini Gokulams and 190 cattle troughs. He sanctioned `2.5 crore for a 4-km approach road to Udayagiri Fort and outlined plans to develop the fort and hill as eco-tourism destinations.