ELURU: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy kept his yet another electoral promise by launching YSR Vahana Mitra scheme here on Friday. Jagan made a promise of providing financial assistance of Rs 10,000 per year to each driver-cum-owner of autorickshaws and taxis when he visited Eluru as part of his Praja Sankalpa Yatra on May 14, 2018.
The scheme will benefit as many as 1,73,102 auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers, who operate their own vehicles for a living. Those who have missed out on the scheme should not be disappointed, said the Chief Minister on the occasion, announcing the extension of the deadline till October 31 for more eligible persons to apply for the assistance.
Addressing the large gathering at the Indoor Stadium here, Jagan, clad in the khaki uniform of auto wallas, recalled his conversation with auto and taxi drivers in 2018. “I will never forget the anguish-filled voices of those auto drivers and taxi drivers, who came to me to explain their problems. They said to make the ends meet, they are operating either taxi or auto, but could only earn Rs 300 to Rs 500 per day, which is barely sufficient to support their families. But, they are forced to shell out Rs 50 per day as fine for not having fitness certificates, which they could not afford,” Jagan recalled on the occasion.
He said to get a fitness certificate, insurance of the vehicle is a must, which costs around Rs 7,500 to Rs 8,000 and another Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 for repair works apart from road tax. “For those who earn on a day-to-day basis, paying Rs 10,000 at a time is very difficult. I understood their problem and promised to help. Today, here I am, keeping the promise,” he said, amid thunderous applause.
“I made it clear that the scheme should be implemented to all the eligible irrespective of caste, creed, religion, region, and party. Out of total 1,75,352 applications, 1,73,102 were cleared,” he explained.
Giving the category-wise break-up, the Chief Minister said 79,000 BCs, 40,000 SCs, 6,000 STs, 17,500 minorities, 20,000 Kapus, 397 Brahmins and 10,000 EBCs have benefited from the scheme. “Village volunteers did a wonderful job and the entire scheme is being implemented in a transparent manner. I feel proud to be the Chief Minister of the State, where such corruption-free schemes are being implemented,” he said. The Chief Minister heaped praise on Transport Minister Perni Venkataramaiah and his department officials, staff and the district collectors for the good work.
Concluding his speech, Jagan said he was saddened by the way the Opposition was politicising everything done by the government for the poor. “I am saddened by the comments of Chandrababu Naidu that on Gandhi Jayanti, liquor shops were opened. It is a baseless remark. In fact, on the day, our government has embarked on a mission to fulfil Gandhiji’s dream of prohibition by implementing the new excise policy, under which 43,000 belt shops were closed and number of liquor shops was reduced to 3,450 from 4,500. I don’t know why a man with so much experience is making such comments,” he said. Earlier, Jagan laid the foundation stone for the Government Medical College at Eluru Government Hospital. Ministers Perini Nani and Alla Nani, MLAs and MPs were present.